Opening Belle (Sherry) - Author Bio

Author Bio
• Birth—ca. 1963-64
• Raised—Rockland County, New York, USA
• Education—B.A., Cornell University; M.F.A., Columbia University
• Currently—lives in New York City, New York


Life is surely ironic for Maureen Sherry. Her father was an Irish immigrant, who worked in his younger days as a porter in the same Fifth Avenue apartment building where her eventual boss from Bear Stearns once lived. Years later, Maureen became the youngest managing director at Bear Stearns. Her 2016 novel, Opening Belle, is an semi-autobiographical, even farcical, take on her years spent in the world of finance.

Maureen grew up in Rockland County, New York State's southernmost county on the West side of the Hudson River. She earned her Bachelor's degree at Cornell University and spent 12 years on Wall Street. In 2000, however, she left, switching gears to earn her M.F.A. at Columbia University. She spent her time raising her four children, writing, and tutoring at inner city schools.

Her first book, Walls Within Walls (2010)—a mystery for middle schoolers—was awarded curriculum prizes by the states of Texas and Connecticut, and she was named one of the Best New Voices by the American Library Association. She has also written for the New York Times Op-Ed page. (Adapted from the author's website.)