Shusterman was born in Brooklyn, New York. Even from a young age, Shusterman was an avid reader. At age 8, Shusterman sent a letter to E. B. White, informing him that he believed Charlotte's Web needed a sequel. White replied, stating that he thought the book was fine as it was, requiring no sequel, but encouraged Shusterman to continue writing. At age 16, Shusterman and his family moved to Mexico City. He finished high school there at the American School Foundation. He attended the University of California, Irvine, where he double-majored in psychology and theater, and was also on the varsity swim team. During his years there, he wrote a popular humor column for the school paper. After college, he got a job as an assistant at Irvin Arthur Associates, where Lloyd Segan became his agent. Within a year, Shusterman had his first book deal, and a screenwriting job.
Shusterman won the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award, and the 2008 California Young Reader Medal for The Schwa Was Here. He served as a judge for the PEN/Phyllis Naylor Working Writer Fellowship in 2012. Some of his other novels include The Dark Side of Nowhere, Everlost, What Daddy Did, The Shadow Club, The Shadow Club Rising, The Eyes of Kid Midas, and the Star Shards Chronicles: Scorpion Shards, Thief of Souls, and Shattered Sky. His novels Downsiders and Full Tilt have each won over 20 awards. Shusterman has also written for TV.
Shusterman won the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award, and the 2008 California Young Reader Medal for The Schwa Was Here. He served as a judge for the PEN/Phyllis Naylor Working Writer Fellowship in 2012. Some of his other novels include The Dark Side of Nowhere, Everlost, What Daddy Did, The Shadow Club, The Shadow Club Rising, The Eyes of Kid Midas, and the Star Shards Chronicles: Scorpion Shards, Thief of Souls, and Shattered Sky. His novels Downsiders and Full Tilt have each won over 20 awards. Shusterman has also written for TV.