Andrew Solomon is a writer and lecturer on politics, culture, and psychology; a professor of clinical psychology at Columbia University Medical Center; and an activist in LGBT rights, mental health, and the arts. He is also president of the PEN American Center. Solomon’s books have won more than 50 awards, including the National Book Award, the National Book Critics Circle Award, and the Wellcome Prize. His best-selling book, Far From the Tree: Parents, Children, and the Search for Identity, tells the stories of families raising exceptional children who not only learn to deal with their challenges, but also find profound meaning in doing so.