Alice Sebold and Glen David Gold, two of today's most respected writers — who are also married to each other — visit Royce Hall in readings and discussion of their latest work, as part of UCLA Live's Spoken Word series at 8 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 5. For tickets, call (310) 825-2101 or visit www.uclalive.org.

Alice Sebold, author of the best-selling debut novel, "The Lovely Bones," is deeply interested in issues of violence and family and how hope can be found in the modern world. "The Lovely Bones" is the story of a murdered adolescent girl who narrates her own story as she watches those she left behind. From this grim subject, Sebold miraculously is able to create a story that is at once tragic, hopeful and luminous.

In a 2003 interview for Borders, Sebold described the experience of writing about heaven: "I loved thinking about Susie's afterlife. I'm all for realism in fiction, but why not break those bounds? Do real people imagine an afterlife for those they have lost? You bet. That's all I'm doing. To me, our versions of heaven — all our versions — are as real as anything here on earth because they inform how we live and breathe every day. So writing about heaven was incredibly fun, ultimately."

Sebold was born in Madison, Wis. Her family moved to the suburbs of Philadelphia when she was a young child. She attended Syracuse University and the University of Houston, and later received an M.F.A. from the University of California, Irvine. In the years between her one‑year stint in Houston as a graduate student in poetry and the publication of her first book when she was 36, Sebold lived in New York, where she worked in a variety of part-time jobs. Her favorite was as a teacher of composition at Hunter College. She credits the returning women students there with inspiring her to go back to school. She has been teaching and lecturing since 1984.

Sebold is also the author of a memoir, "Lucky," which recounts her rape at the age of 18 and the court trial that followed. She lives in California with her husband.

Glen David Gold, author of the acclaimed debut novel, "Carter Beats the Devil," has had a lifelong fascination with magic and wonder. His childhood memories include his 10th-birthday celebration at the Magic Castle, where he saw his mother appear to be sawn in half. He also remembers the cherished Carter the Great poster that his father had given him. Gold's first novel explored the world of vaudeville magicians and early 20th-century America.

Set in the Roaring 20s' pre-Depression, magic-obsessed America, "Carter Beats the Devil" weaves together fact and fiction. It is based on the life of Charles Carter — a.k.a. Carter the Great — a young illusionist whose skill exceeded even the great Houdini's. Carter the Great's magic thrills the most demanding of audiences with his defying acts and elaborate sets. But nothing in his career prepares him for his most outrageous stunt of all, which stars none other than President Warren G. Harding and could cost Carter the reputation he has worked so hard to create.

Gold was born in Hollywood, Calif., at Cedars of Lebanon Hospital, which years later became the Scientology Center. He attended Wesleyan University and the University of California, Berkeley, graduating as the English department valedictorian. He wrote exclusively for San Francisco Bay Area newspapers before being accepted into the University of California, Irvine, M.F.A. program in fiction writing in 1995. He wrote "Carter Beats the Devil" as his thesis, when he was a member of a small class that included Aimee Bender, Danzy Senna and Sebold. He married Sebold in November 2001. Gold has written for the Los Angeles Times Sunday Magazine, The New York Times Sunday Magazine and GQ. He and Sebold live in California with their dog in a 1920s house furnished with magic posters.

Guest speakers Sebold and Gold visit Royce Hall as part of UCLA Live's Spoken Word series, which also includes Art Spiegelman on Feb. 25, Hal Willner presents "Let's Eat: Feasting on the Firesign Theatre" on April 1, Michael Cunningham on April 2, Ira Glass and Chris Ware on April 10, and David Sedaris on June 24–25.

Tickets for Alice Sebold and Glen David Gold are available for $35, $25 and $20 at the UCLA Central Ticket Office at the southwest corner of the James West Alumni Center, online at www.uclalive.org and at all Ticketmaster outlets. UCLA students may purchase tickets in advance for $17. Student rush tickets at the same price are offered to all students with a valid ID one hour prior to show time. For more information or to charge by phone, call (310) 825-2101.

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