Pedro Juan Gutiérrez was born in Matanzas, Cuba, in 1950. Since he was young he has had many different jobs, including newspaper and ice cream seller, soldier, builder, and working in the sugarcane harvest. He worked as a journalist for 26 years, and in 1998 he earned literary success with his book The Dirty Trilogy of Havana, which has been translated into 21 languages. His other novels and story collections have also brought him numerous international awards, and his novel The King of Havana was adapted for cinema by the famous director Agustí Villaronga. Gutiérrez has also published several books of poetry, which he continues to write from Havana, where he now lives, writes and paints.