Patty Dann is an American author, mostly known for her 1986 novel Mermaids, in which a 14-year-old protagonist goes through the ups and downs of adolescence. The novel was made into the cult classic 1990 film Mermaids starring Winona Ryder, Cher, and Christina Ricci. She has an MFA in Writing from Columbia University and a BA in Art History from the University of Oregon. In the last twenty years, Patty Dann has only written three other novels. The Baby Boat in 1998, a book about international adoption and the struggles many parents go through trying to "have" children, Sweet and Crazy a narrative following a 39-year-old woman after the death of her husband, and the aftermath of the events of 9/11 and "The Goldfish Went on Vacation" (2007) a non fiction book about the death of her husband and talking to her child about it. She has taught at Sarah Lawrence College and the West Side YMCA. Ms. Dann currently lives in Manhattan with her son.
