Ian Russell McEwan (born 21 June 1948) is a British novelist and screenwriter. He began his career writing sparse, Gothic short stories. His first two novels, *The Cement Garden* (1978) and The *Comfort of Strangers* (1981), earned him the nickname "Ian Macabre". These were followed by three novels of some success in the late 1980s and early 1990s. His 1997 novel *Enduring Love* was adapted into a film of the same name. He won the Booker Prize with *Amsterdam* (1998). He was awarded the 1999 Shakespeare Prize. His next novel, *Atonement* (2001), garnered acclaim and was adapted into an Oscar-winning film. He received the 2011 Jerusalem Prize. His later novels have included *The Children Act, Nutshell, Machines Like Me* and *What We Can Know.*