Fun Facts Friday: Robert Stone

Robert Stone (21 August, 1937 – 10 January, 2015) was an award winning American novelist known for his novel Dog Soldiers.

Books by Robert Stone*

1. Mr. Stone was born in Brooklyn, NY. His mother was a schizophrenic who was institutionalized, he was raised for several years in a Catholic orphanage.
2. As a young man, the author was a bit troubled and was even expelled from Marist High School during his senior year.
3. Mr. Stone joined the US Navy for four years, and traveled around the world. He gave the Navy much credit for helping him after a tough childhood.
4. The author become a correspondent in Vietnam to INK, a British journal in 1971. The time there inspired his award winning 1974 novel Dog Soldiers. The novel follows a journalist who smuggles heroine from Vietnam.
5. Mr. Stone was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize twice, once for the PEN/Faulkner Award, and five times finalist for the National Book Award for Fiction.
6. The 1975 novel Dog Soldiers won the National Book Award.
7. Even though Mr. Stone never earned an academic degree, he has taught create writing at several universities around the United States.
8. Mr. Stone served as the Chairman of the PEN/Faulkner Foundation Board of Directors for over thirty years
9. During his career Mr. Stone published 9 novels, two stories collections, and a memoir.
10. After years of chain smoking, the author was suffering from emphysema and passed away from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

Books by Robert Stone*

Zohar – Man of la Book
*Ama­zon links point to an affil­i­ate account