Yann Martel

The son of Canadian diplomats, Yann Martel was born in Salamanca, Spain, in 1963. As a child, he had the opportunity to accompany his parents on trips around the world. He visited Alaska, British Columbia, Costa Rica, France, and Mexico. Later, as an adult, he traveled to Iran, Turkey, and India.

He studied philosophy at Trent University in Canada, in the city of Peterborough. He held many different jobs before he began writing at the age of 27. At first, he divided his time between practicing yoga, writing, and serving in the army as a reservist.

At present, Yann lives in Canada, in Saskatoon, with his wife Alice Kuipers (who is also a writer), whom he met at a writers' conference where Alice was volunteering.

A collection of short stories, Seven Stories (1993), and the novel Self (1996) were published in various countries and received favorable reviews from critics, but they did not have the success that was reserved for his latest book — the novel Life of Pi (2001).