Peter Lerangis

Peter Lerangis is a highly accomplished American author, best known for his work in young adult and children's fiction. He is particularly famous for his series, 'The 39 Clues' and 'Seven Wonders', both of which have been bestsellers and have appeared on the New York Times Bestseller list multiple times. Lerangis's books have also been translated into over 35 languages and have sold more than 6.5 million copies worldwide.

Born and raised in Freeport, New York, Lerangis is the son of a retired New York Telephone Company employee and a retired public-elementary-school secretary. He graduated from Harvard University with a degree in biochemistry, while also participating in musicals and singing with the a cappella group, the Harvard Krokodiloes. After graduation, he moved to New York and worked as an actor and freelance copy editor for eight years before becoming an author. In 2003, Lerangis was chosen by First Lady Laura Bush to accompany her to the first Russian Book Festival in Moscow, along with authors R.L. Stine and Marc Brown.

Lerangis has written a number of successful novel series, including 'Drama Club', 'Spy X', 'Watchers', 'Abracadabra', and 'Antarctica' series. He has also contributed to the '39 Clues' series, having written three titles, 'The Sword Thief', 'The Viper's Nest', and 'Vespers Rising'. In addition to his original works, Lerangis has written novels based on film screenplays, including 'The Sixth Sense', 'Sleepy Hollow', and 'Beauty and the Beast', as well as five video game novelizations in the 'Worlds of Power' series.

Lerangis is also a ghostwriter and has been published under the name A.L. Singer. He has written more than forty books in the series 'The Baby-sitters Club' and its various spin-offs, as well as contributing to series such as 'Three Investigators', 'Hardy Boys Casefiles', and 'Sweet Valley Twins'. In 2007, Scholastic announced the launch of a new historical mystery series called 'The 39 Clues', and Lerangis wrote the third book in the series, 'The Sword Thief', published in March 2009. He also wrote the seventh book in the series, 'The Viper's Nest'.

Lerangis currently lives in New York City with his wife, musician Tina deVaron, and their two sons, Nick and Joe. In addition to his writing, Lerangis has performed on Broadway, run a marathon, and gone rock-climbing in Yosemite during a 6.1 earthquake. He has also received numerous awards for his work, including the ALA Schneider Award and a Best Fiction for Young Adults book for 'Somebody, Please Tell Me Who I Am', co-written with Harry Mazer.