Many things can save your life—children who warm your heart, the love of a good man, a circle of wonderful friends, and a great sister. After a tumultuous start in life, I’m lucky enough to now have all these things. I live in Boston with my husband, where I live by these words: “Be regular and orderly in your life, so that you may be violent and original in your work.” I was born in Brooklyn, New York, where I quickly moved from playing with dolls to incessantly reading, spending most of my time at the Kensington Branch Library. Early on I developed a penchant for books rooted in social issues, my early favorites being "Karen" and "The Family Nobody Wanted." Shortly I moved onto "Jubilee" and "The Diary of Anne Frank." My dreams of justice simmered at the fantastically broadminded Camp Mikan, where I went from camper to counselor, culminating in a high point when (with the help of my strongly Brooklyn-accented singing voice), I landed the role of Adelaide in the staff production of Guys and Dolls. Soon I was ready to change the world, starting with my protests at Tilden High and City College of New York . . . Tilden High School. . . until I left to pursue the dream in Berkeley, California, where I supported myself by selling candy, nuts, and ice cream in Bartons of San Francisco. Then, world weary at too tender an age, I returned to New York, married, and traded demonstrations for diapers. While raising two daughters, I tended bar, co-authored a nonfiction book on parenting, ran a summer camp, and (in my all-time favorite job, other than writing) helped resurrect and run a community center. Once my girls left for college, I threw myself deeper into social service and education by working with batterers and victims of domestic violence. I’m certain my novels are imbued with all the above, as well as my journey from obsessing over bad boys to loving a good man. I've published three novels: THE MURDERER'S DAUGHTERS (ST. MARTIN'S PRESS), THE COMFORT OF LIES and ACCIDENTS OF MARRIAGE (Atria/Simon & Schuster)