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Sue Grafton

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Sue Grafton
On April 24, 1940, Sue Grafton was born to Cornelius Warren, an attorney and novelist, and Vivian Boisseau (Harnsberger) Grafton, a high school chemistry teacher, in Louisville, Kentucky. ("Sue Grafton" I 1) Her father, also called Chip, wrote and published three psychological mysteries and a novel as C.W. Grafton. ("Sue Grafton" I 1) With her parents being a lawyer, writer, and teacher, there were various books around the house that her mother labeled: dirty, dull, or good. ("Sue Grafton" I 1) At an early age, Sue Grafton was already pursuing her love for literature given that her parents allowed her older sister, Ann, and her to read any book of their choice. ("Sue Grafton" I 1) As Sue was indulged in adult crime novels, her friends were only reading Nancy Drew mysteries. ("Sue Grafton" I 1) Even with both her parents being alcoholics, she credits them, her father more so than her mother, for her initial love and inspiration in detective fiction and reading in general. ("Sue Grafton" I 1) Sue Grafton first got married when she was only eighteen years old, and began college at the University of Louisville. ("Sue Grafton" II 1) Although Grafton maintained above-average grades, she was not at all devoted to her schoolwork, but "driven by her fright of poor performance." ("Sue Grafton" I 1) During her junior year, Grafton gave birth to her first child. ("Sue Grafton" I 2) She and her husband named their daughter Leslie Flood. ("Sue Grafton" II 3) Grafton graduated and received a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Louisville in 1961 with a major in English Literature and minors in Humanities and Fine Arts. (Grafton 1) In the fall of 1961 at the University of Cincinnati, she initiated her graduate studies in English. ("Sue Grafton" III 2) Though, she dropped out before the end of her first year, viewing the curriculum as "stifling and overly political." ("Sue Grafton" III 2) Grafton and her husband divorced in late 1961, only for her to


Bibliography: "Sue Grafton." Contemporary Authors Online. 2006. The Gale Group. North Allegheny Senior High School Library, Wexford, PA "Sue Grafton." DISCovering Authors. 2003. The Gale Group. North Allegheny Senior High School Library, Wexford, PA

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