His parents were James Childs, an insurance agent, and Sharon Carpenter (née Riegel), an artist who made furniture.
"[1] His father, whom Childs described as "a southern New Mexico intellectual redneck," had been a promising runner in his early years, but a torn Achilles tendon in his freshman year at college permanently ended his athletic ambitions; Childs later believed this setback led his father to becoming a bitter alcoholic.
[2] Childs earned his Bachelor of Arts and graduated magna cum laude from the University of Colorado Boulder in 1990.
[2] He has since written over a dozen books and essay collections, including The Secret Knowledge of Water (2000), House of Rain (2007), and Finders Keepers (2010).
[6] Childs writing has been praised by literary critics for vividly chronicling the geography and history of the American Southwest.