Lee Child

Lee Child
Born Jim Grant 1954 (age 57–58)
Coventry, England, UK
Occupation Novelist, writer, author
Nationality British
Period 1985–Present
Genres Crime fiction, mystery, thriller
Subjects Jack Reacher


Signature

[[1] [2]]

Jim Grant (born 1954), better known by his pen name Lee Child, is a British thriller writer.[1] His wife Jane[2] is a New Yorker,[3] and they currently live in New York state. His first novel, Killing Floor, won the Anthony Award for Best First Novel.

Each of Child's novels follows the adventures of a former American Military Policeman, Jack Reacher, who wanders the United States. Child is a fan of Aston Villa Football Club.[4]

Contents

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Early life

Though Grant was born in Coventry, England, his parents moved him and his three brothers to Handsworth Wood in Birmingham when he was four years old, so they could get a better education.[5] Grant attended Cherry Orchard Primary School in Handsworth Wood until the age of 11 and was one of the cleverest boys in his year. He attended King Edward's School, Birmingham, also the alma mater of J. R. R. Tolkien and Enoch Powell.[6] His father was a civil servant[2] and his younger brother, Andrew Grant, is also a thriller novelist.

Some of Grant's early influences include Enid Blyton, W.E. Johns, and Alistair MacLean.

In 1974, at age 20, Grant attended law school in Sheffield at Sheffield University, though he had no intention of entering the legal profession and, during his student days, worked backstage in a theatre.[2] Instead, he took a job in commercial television after graduating.[7]

Career

Grant joined Granada Television, part of the UK's ITV Network, in Manchester as a presentation director. There he was involved with shows including Brideshead Revisited, The Jewel in the Crown (TV series), Prime Suspect, and Cracker. Grant was involved in the transmission of more than 40,000 hours of programming for Granada, writing thousands of commercials, news stories, and trailers.[8] He stayed with Granada 1977-1995[2] and ended his career there with two years as a trade union shop steward.[9]

After being let go from his job because of corporate restructuring, he decided he wanted to start writing novels, stating they are "the purest form of entertainment."[10] In 1997, his first novel, Killing Floor, was published and he moved to the US in the summer of 1998.[3]

He has said that he chose the name Reacher for the central character in his novels because he is himself tall and, in a supermarket (Asda in Kendal, Cumbria, when he was living in Kirkby Lonsdale), his wife Jane told him: "Hey, if this writing thing doesn't pan out, you could always be a reacher in a supermarket."... "I thought, Reacher — good name."[2] Some books in the Reacher series are written in first person, while others are written in the third person.

In 2007, Grant collaborated with 14 other writers to create the 17-part serial thriller "The Chopin Manuscript" narrated by Alfred Molina that was broadcast weekly on Audible.com from 25 September 2007 to 13 November 2007.

On 30 June 2008, it was announced that Lee Child would be taking up a Visiting Professorship at the University of Sheffield in the UK from November 2008. In 2009, Child funded 52 Jack Reacher scholarships for students at the university.[11]

Child was elected president of the Mystery Writers of America in 2009.[12]

Novels and awards

Other awards

Short stories

See also

References

  1. ^ David Smith (2008-06-22). "Sacked at 40 and on the scrapheap. Now Brummie tops US book charts". London: guardian.co.uk. http://books.guardian.co.uk/departments/crime/story/0,,2286980,00.html. Retrieved 2008-07-08. 
  2. ^ a b c d e "Interview in January Magazine, May 2003". http://www.januarymagazine.com/profiles/leechild.html. Retrieved 2007-10-07. 
  3. ^ a b "Interview in Writers' Write Journal, August 2001". http://www.writerswrite.com/journal/aug01/child.htm. Retrieved 2007-10-07. 
  4. ^ http://www.avfc.co.uk/page/NewsDetail/0,,10265~2451491,00.html
  5. ^ Bob Cornwell. "A Reacher Moment...or Two". twbooks.co.uk. http://www.twbooks.co.uk/crimescene/leechildinterview.htm. Retrieved 2007-02-18. 
  6. ^ David Smith (2008-06-22). "Sacked at 40 and on the Scrapheap: Now Brummie tops US Book Charts". London: guardian.co.uk. http://books.guardian.co.uk/departments/crime/story/0,,2286980,00.html. Retrieved 2008-06-22. 
  7. ^ Claire White (2001-08-01). "A Conversation with Lee Child". Writers Write. http://www.writerswrite.com/journal/aug01/child.htm. 
  8. ^ Author's Publisher (2004-05-01). "Lee Child Biography". BookBrowse. http://www.bookbrowse.com/biographies/index.cfm?author_number=329. 
  9. ^ "Interview with Tangled web Books, 2005". http://www.twbooks.co.uk/crimescene/leechildinterview.htm. Retrieved 2007-10-07. 
  10. ^ Readers Digest. "Select Editions". RD.com. http://www.rd.com/selecteditions/hardway.html. Retrieved 2007-02-18. 
  11. ^ Alison Flood, Students offered scholarships from fictional crimefighter, Jack Reacher, Guardian
  12. ^ "People and Publishing: Milestones", Locus, April 2009, p.8
  13. ^ "Shortlist for Theakston’s Crime Novel of the year Award 2009". digyorkshire.com. 2009-06-02. http://www.digyorkshire.com/HighlightDetails.aspx?Article=202. Retrieved 2009-06-17. 
  14. ^ "The Affair - book summary page". http://www.leechild.com/TA.php. Retrieved 2011-09-13. 
  15. ^ "Lee Child Official Facebook Page". http://www.facebook.com/LeeChildOfficial/posts/241209382605463. Retrieved 2011-11-12. 

External links

Newspaper interviews