American author. A very prolific historical novelist, his best-selling books often touched upon the idea of the struggle for freedom including My Glorious Brothers (about the Maccabees) and a biography of Haym Salomon. Other well know works include Citizen Tom Paine, Freedom Road and Spartacus. He also wrote detective novels under the pen-name, E. V. Cunningham.

Fast, was a strong advocate of communism, and his activities caused him to spend a few months in Federal prison for failing to cooperate with Congress. His novels were blacklisted by mainstream publishers.  In 1956, disillusioned  by truth of Stalin’s brutality  and growing anti-antisemitism in the Soviet Union, he publicly broke with the Communist party. After that, some of his earlier books gain renewed popularity.