Martin Amis was born in Oxford, England in 1949. He is the author of numerous books and collections of essays including: The Rachel Papers (1973) which won the Somerset Maugham Award; Dead Babies (1975); Success (1978); Money: A Suicide Note (1984); London Fields (1989); Times Arrow (1991) which was shortlisted for the Booker Prize; Experience: A Memoir (2000) winner of the James Tait Black Memorial Prize; and most recently House of Meetings (2006). He is a regular contributor to numerous newspapers, magazines and journals, including the Sunday Times, The Observer, the Times Literary Supplement and the New York Times. He was awarded an honorary LittD by the University of East Anglia in 2000. He is professor of Creative Writing at Manchester University.