Donald Barthelme, considered one of the twentieth century's leading writers of experimental short fiction and novels, was born in Philadelphia on April 7, 1931. His parents—Donald Barthelme Sr., an architect, and Helen Bechtold Barthelme, a teacher— reared him and his four younger siblings in Houston, Texas. Three of his brothers (Frederick, Peter, and Steven) have also become writers.

Donald's studies at the University of Houston were interrupted in 1953, when he was drafted into the United States Army to serve in Korea and Japan. Upon his return, Barthelme worked as a reporter for the Houston Post. As he recounted in a 1982 Partisan Review interview with Larry McCaffrey, "it seemed clear that the way to become a writer was to work for a newspaper, as Hemingway had done." He also held various public relations jobs at the University of Houston. Between 1961 and 1962, Barthelme was the director of...