Thomas Mann is considered one of the most significant authors of the 20th century. He was born on June 6, 1875, in the city of Lübeck, Germany. His breakthrough novel, Buddenbrooks, published in 1901, tells the story of a wealthy merchant family over several generations and explores themes of wealth and decline.

Mann's most famous work, the novel "The Magic Mountain", published in 1924, is set in a sanatorium in the Swiss Alps and follows the experiences of a young man, Hans Castorp, who becomes a patient and encounters a cast of eccentric characters. The novel is a philosophical exploration of time, mortality, and the nature of illness and has been interpreted as a critique of European culture in the years leading up to World War I.

In addition to his novels, Mann was an essayist and wrote on a wide range of topics, including politics, culture, and literature. He was a vocal opponent of fascism and spoke out against the rise of the Nazi party in Germany in the 1930s. After Hitler's rise to power in 1933, Mann went into exile, first in Switzerland and later in the United States. During his time in exile, Mann continued to write, publishing several important works, including the novella "Death in Venice", which tells the story of an aging writer who becomes obsessed with a young boy, and "Doctor Faustus", a novel about a composer who sells his soul to the devil for musical genius. In 1929, Mann was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature. He died in Zurich, Switzerland in 1955. 

Thomas Mann's time in the U.S. was a significant period in his life and career. Mann's move to the United States came at a time when the country was facing significant political and social upheaval. The Great Depression was ongoing, and tensions were rising between the United States and other world powers, including Germany. Mann became involved in the political and cultural debates of the time and used his writing to speak out against fascism and Nazism. Mann gave numerous speeches and lectures, often speaking out against the Nazi regime and advocating for democracy and freedom. He also wrote extensively, publishing several important works during his time. Mann's writing during this period was often critical of American culture and society, and he was vocal about his concerns regarding the impact of capitalism and consumerism on American life. Nevertheless, he maintained a close circle of friends and colleagues in the United States, including other writers and intellectuals such as Albert Einstein and W.H. Auden. Despite his contributions to American culture and politics, Mann never felt entirely at home in the United States. He missed his home country of Germany and struggled with feelings of displacement and disconnection. However, Mann became U.S. citizen in 1944.