Marie Arana was born in Lima, Peru. Author of Cellophane, Lima Nights and the memoir American Chica: Two Worlds, One Childhood, she is currently Writer at Large for The Washington Post and a Senior Advisor to the U.S. Librarian of Congress. Her newest book, Bolívar: American Liberator, a biography about Simón Bolívar, is forthcoming in April 2013. Arana lives in Washington, D.C., and Lima, Peru.