Helene Stapinski began her career at her hometown newspaper, The Jersey Journal. She is the author of three memoirs: Five-Finger Discount: A Crooked Family History, Baby Plays Around: A Love Affair, with Music, and Murder in Matera. Her latest book, The American Way, follows the life of a man who escaped Nazi Berlin with the help of Superman’s publisher. Her essays have appeared in several anthologies, most recently, Drinking Diaries: Women Serve Their Stories Straight Up. Helene has also written extensively for The New York Times, for The Washington Post, Travel & Leisure, Food & Wine, Salon, Real Simple, New York magazine and dozens of other newspapers, magazines and blogs. She’s been featured on NPR’s All Things Considered, The Today Show and as a performer with The Moth main stage.

She received her B.A. in journalism from New York University in 1987 and her MFA from Columbia in 1995. She lives in Brooklyn with her husband and two children.