Of all the American expatriates in Paris between 1920 and 1940, Anais Nin was one of the few repatriates. She was born in Neuilly, outside Paris, to artistic parents. Her father, Joaquin, was a pianist and composer; her mother, Rosa, sang. She spent her first eleven years in France, but after Joaquin Nin deserted the family, Mrs. Nin took her children--Anais, Joaquin, and Thorvald--to New York. That separation from her father led Nin to write him a letter that evolved into her most famous literary work, her Diary. Nin withdrew from school before completing her formal education. She continued her studies at home and in the public libraries. Around the age of twenty-one she married Hugh Guiler (later known as Ian Hugo), and sometime before 1930 she returned to France. (Her activities between 1920 and 1930 are vague.) She remained there until 1939, when the outbreak of World War II forced her to return...