About the Author
Walter Anderson was born in a tenement house in Mount Vernon, New York. After dropping out of high school, he enlisted in the United States Marine Corps and served in the Vietnam War. Anderson left the military in 1966 after attaining the rank of sergeant. Anderson earned his GED and then earned degrees from Westchester Community College and Mercy College, where he graduated magna cum laude. Anderson worked as an investigative reporter and journalist with the Associated Press and New York and Ring magazines. He won many awards for his writing and at the age of 36 became editor of Parade magazine.

Anderson's first book, Courage is a Three Letter Word, was published in 1986 and tells the story of how he and other people were able to overcome feelings of anxiety and insecurity to achieve success. He followed up with The Greatest Risk of All (1988) and Read With Me (1990). Anderson has become a champion of literacy and a national spokesman for the GED. He has won many awards for his writing and work, most notably the Horatio Alger award, which he was honored with in 1994 after being nominated by Norman Vincent Peale. Walter Anderson lives in White Plains, New York.