Mona Simpson (; June 14, 1957) is an American novelist and the former wife of Richard Appel. She has written six novels. Studied English at the University of California, Berkeley. She also took Languages and Literature at Bard College. She won a Whiting Award for her first novel, "Anywhere but Here" (1986). It was a popular success and later adapted as a film by the same name and was released in 1999. 