Who is Patricia Highsmith?
Patricia Highsmith was one of the most talented American novelists and short story writers of the 20th century. She is well known for her claustrophobic crime thrillers and macabre short fiction. Many of her works, notably Strangers on a Train and The Talented Mr. Ripley, have been adapted to film. Patricia Highsmith was born Mary Patricia Plangman in Fort Worth, Texas on 19 January 1921. Her parents had divorced five months before Patricia’s birth, and she spent her early childhood with her grandmother, who instilled in her a love of reading. Highsmith later moved in with her mother and stepfather, with whom her life was very stressful. Her relationship with her mother in particular was stormy and complicated. Highsmith studied English composition at Barnard College, graduating in 1942. She began writing professionally for various comic book publishers immediately after graduation, and she spent her twenties living in New York City and Mexico. Her first novel, Strangers on a Train, wa
