Ali Hosseini is Iranian-American and the author of several novels and short stories that have been published in English and Persian. His first novel in English, The Lemon Grove (2012), received a starred review from Publishers Weekly. His second, The Place of Stones (2017), was a finalist for the John Gardner Fiction Prize. A collection of short stories, Dare the Sea, will appear in Fall 2023. His short fiction has been published in the Kenyon Review, Antioch Review, Epoch, Guernica, StoryQuarterly, American Letters & Commentary, Fiction International, Puerto del Sol, and Coffin Factory, as well as in Persian-language magazines (Baang Literary Magazine, Persian Book Review, Iranian.com, Par Magazine, Asre Panjshanbe). He also published a novel and two short story collections in Iran.

Ali was born in the small town of Marvdasht near Shiraz in southern Iran and came to the US in 1975 as a university student. His Midwestern education — Southern Illinois University, Winona State University & University of Nebraska-Lincoln — and the jobs he had to support himself during his school years—farm laborer, construction worker (building a grain elevator), security guard — and later as an IT specialist were important for his understanding and appreciation of the people and culture of his adopted country. He lives in the Boston area.