Peter Straub facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Peter Straub
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Straub in 2009
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| Born | Peter Francis Straub March 2, 1943 Milwaukee, Wisconsin, U.S. |
| Died | September 4, 2022 (aged 79) New York City, New York, U.S. |
| Occupation | Novelist, poet |
| Education | |
| Genre | Horror |
| Notable works | Julia (1975), Ghost Story (1979), The Talisman (1984) |
| Notable awards | Bram Stoker Award, World Fantasy Award, and International Horror Guild Award |
| Spouse |
Susan Bitker
(m. 1966) |
| Children | 2, including Emma Straub |
Peter Francis Straub (born March 2, 1943 – died September 4, 2022) was an American writer. He was famous for his scary horror and supernatural fiction novels. Some of his well-known books include Julia (1975) and Ghost Story (1979). He also wrote The Talisman (1984) with his friend, author Stephen King.
Peter Straub also wrote mystery stories. These include the "Blue Rose trilogy": Koko (1988), Mystery (1990), and The Throat (1993). He won several important writing awards. These include the Bram Stoker Award and the World Fantasy Award.
Contents
Becoming a Writer: Peter Straub's Early Life and Education
Peter Straub was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. His parents were Gordon Anthony Straub and Elvena Nilsestuen. When he was seven, a car hit him. He was badly hurt and stayed in the hospital for months. He even used a wheelchair while learning to walk again. Straub later said this accident made him think about life and death early on.
He loved to read from a young age. However, his parents had different ideas for him. His father wanted him to be a professional athlete. His mother hoped he would become a Lutheran minister.
Straub went to Milwaukee Country Day School on a scholarship. This is where he started writing. In high school, he discovered authors like Thomas Wolfe and Jack Kerouac. He also found his love for jazz music. He felt jazz offered freedom and passion.
He then went to the University of Wisconsin–Madison. There, he enjoyed books by Henry James and William Carlos Williams. He also liked the music of Steve Miller. Peter Straub earned a degree in English in 1965. A year later, he got his master's degree from Columbia University.
He taught English briefly at Milwaukee Country Day. He enjoyed teaching and helping students explore literature. Later, he moved to Dublin, Ireland. He planned to work on a Ph.D. there. But secretly, he wanted to start writing seriously.
Peter Straub's Writing Career and Famous Books
Peter Straub first tried writing regular novels in the mid-1970s. These books, Marriages and Under Venus, were not very successful. So, he decided to try writing scary stories. His first supernatural novel was Julia (1975).
He explained that a few horror novels had been very popular. He saw a chance to write in that genre. He felt he could be creative and experiment with scary stories. After Julia, he wrote If You Could See Me Now (1977).
His fifth novel, Ghost Story (1979), made him widely known. It was praised by critics. Later, it was made into a movie in 1981. Famous actor Fred Astaire starred in it. In 1980, Straub published the fantasy novel Shadowland.
After moving back to America, he wrote Floating Dragon. This book won the August Derleth Award. He said this book would be a break from his usual supernatural stories. He then worked with his friend Stephen King. Together, they wrote the horror-fantasy book The Talisman.
After a quiet period, Straub released Koko in 1988. This book was about the Vietnam War. It was scary but not supernatural. Koko was followed by Mystery (1990) and The Throat (1993). These three books are known as the "Blue Rose Trilogy." In these novels, Straub experimented with different ways of telling stories.
In 1990, Straub published Houses Without Doors. This was a collection of short stories. In 1996, he wrote a thriller called The Hellfire Club. In 1999, he published Mr. X. This novel had a theme of doppelgängers, or look-alikes. It also honored the writer H. P. Lovecraft.
In 2001, Straub and King worked together again. They wrote Black House. This book was a follow-up to The Talisman. It also connected to King's The Dark Tower series. In 2003, Lost Boy, Lost Girl was published. The related book, In the Night Room, came out a year later. Both of these books won the Bram Stoker Award.
Straub also edited two books for the Library of America. In 2005, he edited H. P. Lovecraft: Tales. In 2009, he edited American Fantastic Tales, which was an anthology of stories.
He also wrote several books of poetry. His collection Leeson Park and Belsize Square: Poems 1970 – 1975 was published in 1983. He also helped edit a literary magazine called Conjunctions.
Peter Straub's last novel was A Dark Matter. It was released in February 2010. In 2016, Stephen King mentioned that he and Straub planned to write a third Talisman book. King said they enjoyed working together. However, in 2021, Straub said that due to his health, a third Talisman book was unlikely.
Peter Straub's Personal Life
In 1966, Peter Straub married Susan Bitker. They had two children, Benjamin and Emma Straub. Emma is also a novelist. The family lived in Dublin, Ireland, from 1969 to 1972. Then they lived in London from 1972 to 1979. After that, they lived in the New York City area.
When asked about his favorite writer, Straub often mentioned Henry James. But he also liked other authors. These included Raymond Chandler, Charles Dickens, and Wilkie Collins. He also admired the poet John Ashbery.
Peter Straub loved jazz music. He discovered jazz as a boy in Milwaukee. He enjoyed musicians like Dave Brubeck, Miles Davis, and Lester Young. Besides jazz, he was also very interested in opera and other types of classical music.
Peter Straub passed away on September 4, 2022. He was 79 years old. He died from problems after breaking his hip. At the time of his death, he and his wife lived in Brooklyn.
Books Made into Movies
Several of Peter Straub's books have been made into films or TV shows:
- Full Circle (1977), based on Julia (1975)
- Ghost Story (1981), based on Ghost Story (1979)
- The Talisman (2008 short film), based on The Talisman
- The Talisman (coming soon), an upcoming TV miniseries based on The Talisman
