Stanislaw Lem Biography

Polish writer Stanislaw Lem is a world famous science fiction author whose books include Eden (1959) and Solaris (1961). Born and raised in Lwów, Poland (now Lvov, Ukraine), Lem turned to writing after studying and working in medicine. He first wrote realistic stories and poems, but in the 1950s he turned to writing science fiction. Lem’s books frequently use sarcastic humor and philosophical themes to explore the relationship between humans and machines. In the 1980s several of his books were published in English and he wrote essays for American magazines, and his reputation grew as one of the greats in the genre of science fiction. His other books include Cyberiada (1965), Tales of Pirx the Pilot (1968) and Okamgnienie (2000). His book, Solaris, has been made into a movie twice, first in 1972 by Russian filmmaker Andrei Tarkovsky, then again in 2002 by Steven Soderbergh.