Abraham Josephine Riesman

Last updated

Abraham Josephine Riesman
Born1985 (age 3839)
Oak Park, Illinois, U.S.
OccupationReporter, Essayist
Education Harvard University (AB)
Notable works True Believer: The Rise and Fall of Stan Lee
Spouse S.I. Rosenbaum
Website
abrahamriesman.com

Abraham Josephine Riesman (born 1985) is an American reporter and essayist based in Providence, Rhode Island. She is the author of two biographies, True Believer: The Rise and Fall of Stan Lee (2021), and Ringmaster: Vince McMahon and the Unmaking of America (2023).

Contents

Background and education

Riesman was born and raised in Oak Park, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago. [1] She graduated from Harvard College in 2008 with a degree in Social Studies. [2] After college, she moved to New York City, where she contributed to a variety of publications, including The New York Times , The Washington Post , and The Wall Street Journal . [2]

Career

In 2017, Riesman published her first book, True Believer: The Rise and Fall of Stan Lee . The book is a biography of Stan Lee, the comic book writer, editor, and publisher who is best known for creating Marvel Comics superheroes such as Spider-Man, the X-Men, and the Hulk. [3]

Riesman's second book, Ringmaster: Vince McMahon and the Unmaking of America , was published in 2023. The book is a biography of Vince McMahon, the professional wrestling promoter who is the chairman and CEO of WWE. [4] Ringmaster was a New York Times bestseller, [5] and was described in the New York Times as "magisterial." [6]

Riesman has contributed as a freelance journalist and essayist to numerous publications, including New York Magazine , [7] [8] The Washington Post, [9] Slate , [10] and The Daily Beast. [11]

Personal life

Riesman is transgender and uses she/her/hers pronouns. [12] She is married to the journalist S.I. Rosenbaum. They live in Providence, Rhode Island. [2]

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References

  1. Kelly, Dan (March–April 2022). "Looking for the Real Stan Lee". Harvard Magazine. Retrieved July 15, 2023.
  2. 1 2 3 "Bio". Abraham Josephine Riesman // Writer. Retrieved July 15, 2023.
  3. Riesman, Abraham Josephine (2022). True Believer: The Rise and Fall of Stan Lee. New York, NY: Penguin Random House. ISBN   9780593135730. OCLC   1153337602.
  4. Riesman, Abraham Josephine (March 28, 2023). Ringmaster. Simon and Schuster. ISBN   978-1-9821-6944-2.
  5. "Hardcover Nonfiction Books - Best Sellers - Books - April 16, 2023 - The New York Times". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved July 15, 2023.
  6. Smith, Rory (July 14, 2023). "When You Can't Believe What You're Seeing". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved July 15, 2023.
  7. Riesman, Abraham (December 26, 2016). "How Children of Men Became a Dystopian Masterpiece". Vulture. Retrieved July 15, 2023.
  8. Riesman, Abraham (June 23, 2021). "My Grandfather the Zionist". Intelligencer. Retrieved July 15, 2023.
  9. Riesman, Abraham (July 28, 2022). "What the fall of WWE's Vince McMahon reveals about post-Trump politics". The Washington Post. Retrieved July 15, 2023.
  10. Riesman, Abraham Josephine (March 13, 2022). "The Impatience of Job". Slate. ISSN   1091-2339 . Retrieved July 15, 2023.
  11. "Abraham Riesman". The Daily Beast. December 25, 2020. Retrieved July 15, 2023.
  12. Riesman, Abraham (July 29, 2022). "Abe, Vince, and Gender". Type Slowly. Retrieved July 15, 2023.