I was a second-generation English and American Literature major at Stanford University.  My mother came from Poland to Canada at age 15, and had to repeat grades 1 through 8 in a one-room schoolhouse because her English was not good enough to recite nursery rhymes well.  She went back to college when I was in high school.  My father escaped Nazi Germany in 1938, and later went back with the Allied infantry, going to college on the G.I. bill after the war.  I had it quite a bit easier. I now read science fiction,  historical fiction, biography, history, 18th and 19th Century English classics, mysteries, YA, and once in a while a bit of fantasy.  My fiction, whatever its genre, tends to focus on themes of family communication, unfinished business, and unintended consequences. I've published six SF novels, three stand-alone (though arguably related) near future, three a series involving other planets and aliens. I've also published one nonfiction book, a resource for authors, would-be authors, and anyone interested in understanding the American legal landscape.