Harlan Coben facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Harlan Coben
Born	(1962-01-04) January 4, 1962 (age 63) Newark, New Jersey, U.S.
Occupation	Author
Alma mater	Amherst College
Period	1990–present
Genre	Mystery, thriller
Notable works	Myron Bolitar series of novels
Notable awards	Anthony Award (1996), Edgar Award and Shamus Award (1997)
Spouse	Anne Helen Armstrong
Children	4

Harlan Coben (born January 4, 1962) is an American author. He is famous for writing exciting mystery and thriller novels. His stories often involve secrets from the past, unexpected twists, and surprising endings. Many of his books have been turned into movies and TV shows.

Harlan Coben has won several important awards for his writing. These include the Edgar Award, the Shamus Award, and the Anthony Award. He was the first writer to win all three! His books are very popular around the world. They have been translated into 46 languages and have sold over 90 million copies.

Early Life and School

Harlan Coben was born in Newark, New Jersey. He grew up in Livingston. He went to Livingston High School. A famous friend from his childhood was Chris Christie, who later became a governor.

He went to Amherst College to study political science. While he was there, he realized he wanted to be a writer.

Writing Career

After college, Coben worked in the travel industry. This was a business owned by his grandfather. During this time, he wrote his first book, Play Dead. He was 26 when it was accepted for publication in 1990. His second book, Miracle Cure, came out in 1991.

He then started a popular series of thrillers. These books feature a character named Myron Bolitar. Myron is a former basketball player who becomes a sports agent. He often ends up solving murder mysteries involving his clients.

In 2001, Coben published Tell No One. This was his first stand-alone thriller in a while. A French movie based on this book was released in 2006. After Tell No One, he wrote many more stand-alone novels. His book Hold Tight, published in 2008, was his first to reach number 1 on the New York Times Best Seller list.

Coben has also written short stories and essays. One story, "The Key to My Father," was about his father. It was published in The New York Times in 2003. His writings have also appeared in Parade magazine.

Awards and Recognition

Harlan Coben has received many awards for his exciting books.

• In 1996, he won the 1996 Anthony Award for Deal Breaker. This was the first book in his Myron Bolitar series.
• His book Fade Away won both the Shamus Award and the Edgar Award in 1997.
• Back Spin, another Myron Bolitar novel, won the Barry Award in 1998.
• In 2010, Live Wire won the RBA Prize for Crime Writing. This is a major award for crime fiction.
• In 2023, the Japanese version of his book Win was nominated for a Mystery Writers of Japan Award.

Books on Screen: Adaptations

Many of Harlan Coben's books have been made into movies and TV shows.

• The first book to be adapted was Tell No One. A French film called Ne le dis à personne came out in 2006.
• His book No Second Chance became a French TV miniseries in 2015.
• Just One Look also became a miniseries a few years later.

Coben has also created original TV shows.

• He created the British crime drama The Five, which aired in 2016.
• He also created Safe, a French-British crime drama. It premiered on Netflix in 2018.

Film and TV Series List

In 2018, Harlan Coben signed a big deal with Netflix. This deal meant that 14 of his novels would be turned into TV series or films. He helps produce all of them.

• The first Netflix series was The Stranger, which premiered in January 2020.
• In 2022, Netflix extended their deal with Coben. Now, his popular Myron Bolitar series can also be adapted.
• Fool Me Once was announced in February 2023. It was released on January 1, 2024.
• Harlan Coben's Shelter, a series based on his Mickey Bolitar novel Shelter, was released on August 18, 2023, by Amazon Studios.

Here is a list of some of the TV series based on his books:

Personal Life

Harlan Coben lives in Ridgewood, New Jersey. He is married to Anne Armstrong-Coben, who is a pediatrician (a doctor for children). They have four children together.

See also

In Spanish: Harlan Coben para niños