Jackie French was born in Sydney in 1953, grew up in Brisbane and moved to her present home in the NSW bush in her early twenties. She lives with her husband Bryan in a house they built themselves with stone from the creek with power from a homemade waterwheel when it's too shady for the solar panels, six wombats and various other birds and animals. She writes for all age groups - from the under 6's to the over 60's. She has won many awards for her children's titles and has been a recipient of two Commonwealth Literary Awards. She is regarded as the guru of Australian organic growing, having written over sixty books on farming, gardening and pest control. She has her own TV show on gardening in Australia.