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# Erik Larson
Erik Larson is an American author and a master of narrative non-fiction. His vividly written bestselling books have won numerous awards and have been published worldwide.
Larson’s most recent bestseller, *The Splendid and the Vile: A Saga of Churchill, Family, and Defiance During the Blitz*, is a biography of Winston Churchill’s first year as prime minister. In this 2020 *New York Times* Notable Book, Larson delivers an intimate chronicle of Churchill and London during the Blitz, offering an inspiring portrait of courage and leadership in a time of unprecedented crisis while showing in cinematic detail how Churchill taught the British people “the art of being fearless.” Drawing on diaries, original archival documents, and once-secret intelligence reports—some released only recently—Larson provides a new lens on London’s darkest year through the day-to-day experience of Churchill and his family.
His previous book, *Dead Wake: The Last Crossing of the Lusitania,* about the 1915 sinking of the ocean liner Lusitania was #1 on the *New York Times* Bestseller list. *In the Garden of Beasts* is a gripping portrait of the American ambassador and his family in Berlin during the first years of Hitler’s reign. The critically-acclaimed *The Devil in the White City* inter­twines the stories of the Chicago 1893 World’s Fair and one of America’s worst serial killers. It remained on the *New York Times* bestseller lists for a combined total of over six years, won an Edgar Award for nonfiction crime writing, and was nominated for the National Book Award. *Isaac’s Storm*, about the devastating Galveston hurricane of 1900 and the birth of modern American meteorology, became an immediate *New York Times* bestseller and won the American Meteorology Society’s prestigious Louis J. Battan Author’s Award.
Larson began his writing career as a journalist working briefly at the *Bucks County Courier Times* before becoming a staff writer for *The Wall Street Journal* and later a contributing writer for *TIME* magazine.  He has written articles for *The Atlantic*, *Harper’s*, *The New Yorker,* and other publications and has taught nonfiction writing at San Francisco State, the Johns Hopkins Writing Seminars, and the University of Oregon.
He graduated summa cum laude from the University of Pennsylvania, where he studied Russian history, language and culture. He also received a master’s degree in journal­ism from Columbia University.
Erik Larson’s books
## Other 2022 Authors & Speakers
## Dave Barry
Pulitzer Prize Winning Author, Humorist, Columnist
## Louann Brizendine
Dr. Louann Brizendine is an American scientist and neuropsychiatrist. She is a researcher, clinician and professor at the University of California San Francisco (UCSF), and founded the Women’s Mood and Hormone Clinic at UCSF. She is the author of three books: *The Female Brain* (2006), *The Male Brain* (2010) and *THE UPGRADE: How the Female Brain Gets Stronger and Better in Midlife and Beyond* which goes on sale in April 2022.
## Bill Browder
William Browder is an American-born British financier and political activist. He is the CEO of Hermitage Capital Management, the Head of the Global Magnitsky Justice Campaign and Author of *Red Notice*. He was the largest foreign investor in Russia until 2005, when he was denied entry to the country and declared “a threat to national security” for exposing corruption in Russian state-owned companies.
## Jeffrey Brown
Jeffrey Brown is Senior Correspondent and Chief Arts Correspondent for PBS *NewsHour*, public television’s prestigious nightly news program viewed by millions. During his career with *NewsHour* he has served as co-anchor, studio moderator, and field reporter on a wide range of national and international issues.
## Dr. David Eagleman
David Eagleman is an American neuroscientist, author, and science communicator. He teaches neuroscience at Stanford University and is CEO and co-founder of Neosensory, a company that develops devices for sensory substitution. He is the writer and presenter of *The Brain*, an Emmy-nominated television series on PBS and BBC.
## Nikki Erlick
Nikki Erlick is a journalist and travel writer whose work has appeared online with *New York Magazine*, *Harper’s Bazaar, Newsweek, Cosmopolitan, Indagare Travel, The Huffington Post,* and *Vox*.
## Alex Filippenko
Filippenko is an Astrophysicist on a Nobel Prize winning team, as well as the 2007 Gruber Cosmology Prize, 2015 Breakthrough Prize in Fundamental Physics to all team members. He was voted the “best professor at UC Berkeley 9 years!”.
## Chris Gardner
Chris Gardner is an entrepreneur, single parent, philanthropist, speaker and writer. His story may be best known by those who have read his critically acclaimed first book, *The Pursuit of Happyness*, or seen the award-winning film adaptation starring actor Will Smith.
## Doug Holladay
CEO, professor, and author of *Rethinking Success*, Holladay draws from his diverse background in government and business to explore personal fulfillment and leadership, urging readers to redefine traditional notions of success.
## Victoria Kastner
Architectural historian and author, known for her in-depth works on the Hearst Castle, including the book *Hearst Castle: The Biography of a Country House*. Her writings bring to life the rich history of architecture, design, and California heritage.
## Steven E. Koonin, PhD
Leader in Science Policy in the US, Author, Undersecretary for Science for President Obama, Theoretical Physics Professor at CalTech then NYU
## Jaron Lanier
Computer scientist, artist, and author of *You Are Not a Gadget* and *Ten Arguments for Deleting Your Social Media Accounts Right Now*, known for his critique of technology’s impact on society.
## John Markoff
John Markoff is a senior writer for *The New York Times* who has coauthored *Cyberpunk: Outlaws and Hackers on the Computer Frontier* and the bestselling *Takedown: The Pursuit and Capture of Kevin Mitnick, America’s Most Wanted Computer Outlaw*. His latest book is *Whole Earth: The Many Lives of Stewart Brand.*
## Tripp Mickle
Journalist and author, known for his in-depth coverage of Apple and Silicon Valley in *After Steve*. Mickle’s work offers compelling insights into the intersection of technology, innovation, and leadership in the modern era.
## Mark Mills
Mark P. Mills, a physicist, is a Manhattan Institute senior fellow, a faculty fellow at Northwestern University, and partner in Montrose Lane, an energy-tech venture fund. He is author of Digital Cathedrals (2020) and Work in the Age of Robots (2018), and he is the co-author of The Bottomless Well (2006).
## Steven Pifer
Former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine and senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, recognized for his expertise in arms control, nuclear security, and U.S.-Russia relations. He is a noted author on geopolitical strategy and international diplomacy.
## Mary Roach
Mary Roach is an American author specializing in popular science and humor who has published six best-selling works of nonfiction. Her writing has appeared in Outside, National Geographic, Wired, and the New York Times Magazine, among other publications, and her TED talk made the TED 20 Most Watched list.
## Desmond Shum
Desmond Shum is a serial entrepreneur with experience in technology, financial investment and real estate development in the Greater China region. He is the author of *New York* Times best seller *Red Roulette*, called “the book China doesn’t want you to read,” by CNN.
## Julia Flynn Siler
Julia Flynn Siler is a bestselling author and acclaimed journalist known for her impactful works such as *“The White Devil’s Daughters”* and *“Lost Kingdom: Hawaii’s Last Queen.”*
## Tracy K. Smith
Tracy K. Smith is an American poet and educator. She won the Pulitzer Prize in 2012 for her volume, *Life on Mars*, and was the 22nd Poet Laureate of the United States. Smith’s signature voice, whether in elegy or praise or outrage, insists upon vibrancy and hope, even―and especially―in moments of inconceivable travesty and grief.
## Rick Stevenson
Filmmaker, writer, and founder of The 5000 Days Project, a long-term project documenting the lives of young people. His storytelling often focuses on personal growth, resilience, and the beauty of human development over time.
## James Strock
Strock writes the ‘*Next Nationalism’* on Substack and hosts the ‘*Serve to Lead’* podcast.
## Amor Towles
The author of *A Gentleman in Moscow* and *Rules of Civility* has captivated readers around the world. *Rules of Civility* ( 2011) was a *New York Times* bestseller and was named by the *Wall Street Journal* as one of the best books of 2011.
## Amy Zegart
Amy Zegart is an American academic specializing in U.S. intelligence, emerging technologies and national security, and global political risk management. She has been featured by the *National Journal* as one of the ten most influential experts in intelligence reform.
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