Conroy, Pat

The American author Donald Patrick "Pat" Conroy was born in Atlanta, Georgia, as the oldest of seven siblings. His father, Don, who died in 1998, was a career fighter pilot and veteran of the Second World War, the Korea War and the Vietnam War. Pat Conroy said that his violent behaviour at home had a permanent impact on Conroy’s life and work. The family was constantly moving from one air base to another throughout the American south, and Conroy attended The Citadel Military College in Charleston, Couth Carolina. His 1970 book debut, The Boo, was inspired by his time there.