Lionel Shriver (born Margaret Ann Shriver, May 18, 1957) is an American journalist and author. She was born in Gastonia, North Carolina, into a deeply religious family - her father is a Presbyterian minister. She changed her name at the age of 15 from Margaret Ann to Lionel because she didn't like the name she had been given, and as a tomboy she felt that a conventionally male name fit her better. She was educated at Barnard College, Columbia University (BA, MFA). She has lived in Nairobi, Bangkok and Belfast, and currently lives in London. She won the 2005 Orange Prize for her eighth published novel, We Need to Talk About Kevin, a thriller and close study of maternal ambivalence, and the role it might have played in the title character's decision to murder seven of his classmates in a school shooting. The book created a lot of controversy, and achieved success through word of mouth. Her previous novels include The Female of the Species (1986), Checker and the Derailleurs (1987), Ordinary Decent Criminals (1990), Game Control (1994), A Perfectly Good Family (1996) and Double Fault (1997). Her ninth novel, The Post-Birthday World, was released in March 2007 by HarperCollins.

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