Ayn Rand was an American author, philosopher, and screenwriter best known for her novel Atlas Shrugged. She was born Alisa Zinov'yevna Rosenbaum in St. Petersburg, Russia in 1905 and immigrated to the United States in 1926. Her works are known for their promotion of individualism and laissez-faire capitalism. Rand's most famous work, Atlas Shrugged, was published in 1957 and is considered a classic of 20th century literature.