In a writing career that spans five decades, John Barth has established himself as the premier writer of the postmodern novel in America. Perhaps more than any other contemporary writer, Barth has managed to combine consistently cutting-edge formal experimentation and theoretical sophistication with a deep commitment to the renewal and replenishment of traditional narrative genres and styles.

John Simmons Barth and his twin sister, Jill, were born on 27 May 1930 in Cambridge, Maryland, to John Jacob Barth and Georgia Simmons Barth; they had an older brother, William. At Cambridge High School he played drums in the band and wrote for the school newspaper. After graduating in 1947 he studied harmony and orchestration in summer school at the Juilliard School of Music in New York City. His interest and training in music are often seen as having influenced his approach to writing fiction, which he frequently discusses in terms of "arrangements...