Born: 1916 in Augusta, Georgia
Yerby, a Georgia native, began his literary career as a writer of fiction
His early life was marked by a racial conflict
Although he identified himself as black, he was racially mixed
Frank Yerby started teaching English at Florida A. & M. College in Tallahassee, Florida
Tired of teaching, he quit his teaching job and started to work with Ford
During this time he started concentrating on writing
His first short story called Health Card earned O. Henry Memorial Award for best first short story.
Health Card talked about the emotional and mental effects of racism on a young African American soldier
Soon, he started writing about race and identity in the form of a historical novel rather than racial problems
Because of the effect of racial problems on him in America, Yerby moved to Madrid, Spain where he died in 1991
Death : November 29, 1991 in Spain