Aldous Huxley

Born in Godalming, Surrey, on July 26, 1894, he came from the prominent Huxley family and grew up in an atmosphere shaped by science, literature, and public debate. A serious eye illness when he was young left him with lasting vision problems and changed the course of his life, steering him away from medicine and toward writing.

He became one of the major English writers of the 20th century, publishing novels, essays, criticism, and travel writing across a long and varied career. Early books such as Crome Yellow and Antic Hay established his witty, satirical voice, while Brave New World (1932) made him internationally famous for its haunting vision of a controlled future society.

Later in life, he continued to widen his interests, writing about philosophy, religion, human potential, and the mind in books including The Perennial Philosophy and The Doors of Perception. He died in Los Angeles on November 22, 1963, but his writing remains widely read for the way it combines intelligence, unease, and curiosity about the modern world.