THE PEN NAME

Sam Anders is the pen name for a person who needs some cover, just like my father with his many official identities (with bona fide U.S government issued fake passports) and aliases. Interviewed by a podcast called “Tell me about your Father” under my maiden name, I decided that although I wanted the American public to read the story of a CIA childhood, it would be more comfortable to keep my identities as an interpreter and a writer separate. 

Life started normally enough.  I was born on a naval base in Florida and my family moved around the east coast of the United States until I was five.  Then, we moved to Nairobi and the fun began. It was not until Paris, when I was ten, that I learned that my father was a spy. We lived in five countries while I was growing up, in Africa, Europe and South America.  Now, lots of families move around for international business, the US military or the foreign service. What was unusual in my childhood was the secrecy and daily deception. But the family also had lot of adventures, from safaris in Kenya to crossing the Atlantic on a small sailboat, while sampling new foods and meeting fascinating people along the way. Looking back on those years, I understand that my dad was able to indulge his thirst for adventure courtesy of the CIA. In return, he collected information on America’s enemies and allies alike- with a family in tow. And when not living overseas like people out of some Hemmingway novel, we lived near Langley in Virginia and tried to be a normal American family.  

As an interpreter for over thirty years, I have worked for everyone from broccoli-pickers in California to heads of state around the world.  Over the last twenty I’ve focused on the area of international affairs and multilateralism in Vienna, Geneva and New York, covering a range of topics from disarmament to international peace and security. A childhood steeped in international affairs buffeted about the globe by American foreign policy and the geopolitics of the Cold War provided the perfect education and training for diplomatic interpreting.