Itzhar Vardi (born 1968) left his home in Kibbutz Beit Kama for the last time at the age of 23. After working odd jobs for a time, he began proofreading and editing for the Israeli newspaper Maariv while completing his B.A. in philosophy and a diploma in editing and translation from Tel Aviv University, and later his Masters’ degree in Hebrew & Comparative Literature from the University of Haifa.

Today, Vardi works as a science writer for the Israel Institute of Technology. He lives in Kiryat Tivon with his wife Shuly Almagor-Vardi and their four kids.