Born on July 13, 1904, Isaac Bashevis Singer lived in Poland, in towns both small and large, with his father, a Hasidic rabbi, and his mother, the daughter of a rabbi. Storytelling was a large part of their family life, so it wasn't surprising when Mr. Singer developed a fondness for working with books. He studied at a Rabbinical Seminary and supplemented his income by teaching Hebrew.

In 1923, Mr. Singer moved to Warsaw, where he worked as a proofreader for the Literarische Bleter. He also translated German books by Thomas Mann, Erich Marie Remarque, and Knut Hamsun into Yiddish. He was associate editor of Globus magazine from 1933 to 1935.

His first book was, Satan in Goray, was published in 1932. It told the 17th century story of a false messiah and the cultural fervor that arose around those who believed in the man.

In 1935, Singer wished to work and live away from the rising anti-Semitism in Poland, so he emigrated to New York City. He became a citizen of the United States in 1943. His first book in English, Gimpel the Fool, was published in 1957. Beloved for his many books, Singer was elected to the National Institute of Arts and Letters in 1964, at that time its only member who wrote in a language other than English. Movies based on Singer's books are The Magician of Lublin, Yentl, and Enemies: a Love Story, the latter being somewhat autobiographical.

Many books were published for children containing Mr. Singer's work, among them Stories for Children, Zlateh the Goat (illustrated by Maurice Sendak), and Why Noah Chose the Dove (illustrated by Eric Carle).

A true treasure of the world at large, Mr. Singer passed away in 1991, on July 24th, at the age of 88.