Born into a middle-class Southern family, Andre Dubus was born on August 11, 1936 in Lake Charles, Louisiana. He attended a Roman Catholic high school, and throughout his career he credited his lifelong Catholicism for his strong compassion for others. In fact, when asked how he would describe his writings, Dubus answered, "Catholic."

After attending a state college and earning a bachelor's degree in English, Dubus joined the Marine Corps. At the age of nineteen, he began writing short stories; in 1963, he resigned his military commission to enter the prestigious Iowa Writers' Workshop at the University of Iowa. Also that year, Dubus' first story, "The Intruder," was published.

After receiving his M.F.A., Dubus and his wife and children moved to Massachusetts, where he taught modern fiction and creative writing at Bradford College. He held this job until 1984. During his years as a professor, Dubus published his...