Gregory Maguire was born on June 9, 1954 in Albany, New York. He came from a family of writers, his father a journalist and speech writer and his mother a poet. Maguire and several of his siblings all grew up to be professional authors. He quite naturally developed a love for books at an early age, and in addition to being an avid reader, he kept a journal and wrote several stories, beginning when he was just a young child. Maguire attended Catholic schools and read about saints and angels, and soon found himself fascinated with stories of fantasy and magic.

Though he has written some realist fiction, Gregory Maguire is best known for producing fantasy, science fiction, and creative renditions of fairy tales. Maguire says that his fascination with magic led him to look for magic in everyday life, and after discovering a pond that...