Authors
Ó hAllmhuráin, Gearóid
Dr Gearóid Ó hAllmhuráin is an Irish historian and anthropologist specialising in ethnomusicology and currently lecturing at the University of San Francisco. A leading authority on the history of Irish traditional music, he is also an accomplished multi-instrumentalist with several All-Ireland titles on concertina and uilleann pipes to his credit.
Abdulla, Raficq
Raficq Abdulla was awarded an MBE in 1999 for his ecumenical work among Muslims, Jews and Christians. He has written and presented numerous radio programmes about Islam for the BBC, including a series of talks on the Prophet Muhammad and the Four Caliphs, and programmes on Jalaluddin Rumi. He has written award-winning screenplays for Channel 4, poetry and articles for a range of journals, and he is a frequent book reviewer. .....
Abrahams, Philippa
Trained at the Slade School of Fine Art and the Courtauld Institute of Art, Philippa Abrahams is an artist, conservator, museum education consultant and teacher, and an expert on historic art materials and painting and drawing techniques. She has contributed to several television and radio programmes, advising on techniques and materials and demonstrating the working methods of artists including Michelangelo, Titian, Seurat and Whistler. .....
Aciman, Andre
André Aciman teaches Comparative Literature at the City University Graduate Center. He is the author of False Papers and the memoir Out of Egypt.
Ackerley, J. R.
J. R. Ackerley (1896-1967) was for many years the literary editor of the BBC magazine The Listener. His works include three memoirs, Hindoo Holiday, My Dog Tulip, and My Father and Myself, and a novel, We Think the World of You (all available as New York Review Books).
Ackroyd, Peter
London has been the main character in the work of Peter Ackroyd ever since his first novel, The Great Fire of London. His Hawksmoor won the Whitbread and the Guardian Fiction Prize, Chatterton was shortlisted for the Booker, London: the Biography won the South Bank Show Annual Award for Literature. Reviewers commonly categorize him as the Dickens of our day.
Aczel, Richard
Richard Aczel is the author of National Character and European Identity in Hungarian Literature, 1772-1848.
Adams, Henry
Henry Adams (1838–1918) was an American historian, journalist, and novelist. In 1907 he published his Pulitzer Prize–winning autobiography, The Education of Henry Adams, considered by many to be the most important nonfiction work of the twentieth century. He died in 1918 at his home in Washington, D.C.
Adams, Sarah
Sarah Adams studied Art and Design at Hull College of Art. After graduating she completed a post-graduate in illustration at Central St Martins School of Art in London. Sarah has worked for numerous and varied publishers including Walker Books, Orchard books and The Times but GARY AND RAY was the first picture book she both wrote and illustrated. She has exhibited her work widely in London both in mixed and solo shows. .....
Agard, John
John Agard is one of the most popular poets writing in Britain today. He is the author of many children's books and his collection of poetry for young children, We Animals Would Like A Word With You was shortlisted for the Smarties Prize. He was born in British Guiana (now Guyana) and worked for the Guyana Sunday Chronicle newspaper as sub-editor and feature writer before moving to England in 1977, where he became a touring lecturer for the Commonwealth Institute, travelling to schools throughout the UK to promote a better understanding of Caribbean culture. .....
Aggs, Patrice
Patrice Aggs was born and brought up in the United States, but now lives in West Sussex, England. She has illustrated over thirty-five picture books for children. In the early 1980s she was part of the team which produced the animated film The Snowman.
Patrice is currently writing picture books, illustrating and printmaking. She lives on a farm in West Sussex with her husband and two teenagers. .....
Aiken, Joan
Joan Aiken, the daughter of the American poet and writer Conrad Aiken and Jessie Macdonald Aiken (also an author), was an immensely popular and prolific author who wrote almost a hundred novels for adults and children. The creator of the stories about Arabel and her pet raven Mortimer, which have been televised on the BBC, she wrote wonderful, quirky novels, full of humour and the unexpected, about alternative realities. .....
Alatalo, Jaakko
Jaakko Alatalo was born in the Midwestern part of Finland. He studied photography at Lahti Institute of design and he has been working as a free lance photographer and author for over thirty years. He has lived in Lapland since the 1978. Numerous newspapers, magazines and book publishers have used his photographs and texts. He has created some photo-poem books together with poet Vilho Vähäsarja. .....
Albaret, Celeste
Céleste Albaret (1892-1984) was born into a peasant family in the mountainous region of Lozère, France. In 1913, she married Odilon Albaret, a Parisian chauffeur, whose clients included Marcel Proust. Odilon suggested that his new wife, who was lonely in the big city and at a loss for something to do, run errands for Proust, and before long Céleste found herself employed as the writer's full-time (indeed round-the-clock) housekeeper, secretary, and nurse, filling those roles until his death in 1922. .....
Alighieri, Dante
Dante Alighieri (1265–1321) was born into a noble family in Florence. He fought as a cavalryman, served in a variety of civic and diplomatic positions, and in 1300 attained a preeminent place in the administration of his native city. Florence was at the time caught in a bitter struggle between the Guelphs and the Ghibellines—as well as between contending factions within those political parties —and in 1301, having been sent on an embassy to the Pope in Rome, Dante learned that his enemies had come to power. .....
Allen, Bob
Bob Allen is the author of many walking guides to the mountains. He is a member of numerous climbing clubs and has significant international walking and climbing experience. He has known the Lake District all his life and now lives in Grasmere, where he still keeps active, takes photographs and paints watercolours of mountains.
Allen, Jonathan
Jonathan Allen has created many wonderful picture books for children. His international success is based on his observant wit, appealing art and his child-like sense of fun. Jonathan lives happily in a quiet village in South Cambridgeshire with his partner, his two children, a dog, a cat, two guinea pigs, several guitars and three computers.
Amery, Colin
Colin Amery is Director of the World Monuments Fund in Britain and a writer and architectural consultant. He was architectural critic of the Financial Times for 20 years, an editor of the Architectural Review and has been the author of many architectural books. He is an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Institute of British Architects.
Amnesty International,
Amnesty International is a worldwide movement of people who campaign for internationally recognized human rights. AI has a varied network of members and supporters around the world. At the latest count, there were more than 2.2 million members, supporters and subscribers in over 150 countries and territories in every region of the world. Although they come from many different backgrounds and have widely different political and religious beliefs, they are united by a determination to work for a world where everyone enjoys human rights.
Anastasio, Andrea
Andrea Anastasio is a cosmopolitan transcultural soul and artist; part designer, part philosopher, part writer. Born in Rome, he traveled to India, when he was 18 years old, where he discovered another world – a non Euro-centric world. Now, 25 years later, 11 years of which he has spent in India, he has developed a deep and layered knowledge of art, religious studies, music, theater and philosophy. .....
Anderson, Brendan
Brendan Anderson was born in Belfast in December 1945. He has worked in print for thirty-five years - first as a compositor, then as a proofreader, a typesetter and page make-up artist. Selected by an enlightened editor at the Irish News to be trained as a journalist in 1989, he became senior reporter and security writer for that paper within two years. He has covered all the big stories of the Irish troubles, and interviewed and questioned all of the major players. .....
Anderson, Rachel
Rachel Anderson was born in 1943. She has worked in radio and journalism. Rachel has written four books for adults and 55 for young readers. She lives in Norfolk with her husband and has several grandchildren and two goldfish.
To visit Rachel Anderson's website click here
Anderson, Scoular
Scoular Anderson is Scottish by birth. He studied Graphic Design at the Glasgow School of Art and worked as an illustrator for London University. He worked as a teacher at a comprehensive school in Scotland. He has been a freelance writer and illustrator for 16 years. To visit Scoular Anderson's website click here
Andreadis, Ianna
Ianna Andreadis is an artist renowned for her brilliant graphic work. She lives and works in Paris
Anholt, Catherine
Catherine Anholt and her husband Laurence are a husband-and-wife team who have worked together on more than 60 picture books, published all over the world in more than 17 different languages. Their picture books – including the Chimp and Zee series – have won numerous awards and have been featured on television and radio. Catherine grew up in the Cotswolds as one of a family of eight. After a brief nursing career, she found her true vocation as an artist at Falmouth Art School, leaving to take an MA at the Royal College of Art in London. .....
Anholt, Laurence
Laurence Anholt is part of a husband-and-wife team who have worked together on more than 60 picture books, published all over the world in more than 17 different languages. Their picture books – including the Chimp and Zee series – have won numerous awards and have been featured on television and radio. Laurence has been described by William Watt as one of the most versatile authors writing for children today. .....
Apatoff, Lise
Lise Apatoff, originally from Chicago, has been living on a farm in the Tuscan countryside north of Florence since 1978. She shares her intimate understanding of Italy as a teacher, travel coordinator and museum lecturer by making the “the living classroom of the Renaissance” come alive for visitors of all of ages by imparting a passion for art, history, and the countless delightful nuances of the Italian culture.
Apps, Roy
Roy Apps is the author of 50 children's books. His novel The Secret Summer of Daniel Lyons won the Writers' Guild Children's Book Award and was shortlisted for the Whitbread Awards. It is now a successful musical. Roy also writes extensively for radio, theatre and TV. In 2001 he was awarded a BAFTA for his special contribution to children's TV. Roy visits schools, libraries and bookshops. He runs writing projects for all ages and over the last few years has helped young and new writers create books, plays, films, performance poetry, podcasts and an opera. .....
Archer-Wills, Anthony
Anthony Archer-Wills has designed and built over 2,000 water features – from small ponds in urban gardens to vast lakes on country estates. He runs a design consultancy and water plant nursery in West Sussex. His innovative use of new materials and boldly imaginative construction techniques is widely acclaimed by gardening experts, and he is much in demand, in both Europe and the United States, as a lecturer on every aspect of water feature construction and planting. .....
Ardizzone, Edward
Edward Ardizzone was the eldest of five children. In 1905 his family moved to Ipswich, where he learnt to know and love the little coastal steamers that he was to draw so often in the Little Tim books. Illustrator of more than 170 much-loved children's books, Edward Ardizzone was awarded the Kate Greenaway Medal in 1956 and the CBE in 1971. He died in 1979.
Armstrong, Carole
Carole Armstrong has for many years been an art teacher and museum educator, working both in England and in the USA. She has introduced art activities, tours, workshops, poetry and art competitions for children.
Armstrong, Judy
Judy Armstrong is a New Zealander, with bases in North Yorkshire and the French Alps. While she loves her home in a small village in the North York Moors national park, she still finds time to travel by foot, kayak, horse, bike and skis throughout Europe, Africa, South and Central America, and Asia. Judy works regularly for magazines and newspapers specialising in adventure travel and outdoor pursuits. .....
Arni, Samhita
Samhita Arni was Tara's youngest author – they published her version of the great epic Mahabharatha in 1996, when she was 12. The book, which she wrote and illustrated, has been published in seven languages. She has since studied film and religion at Mount Holyoke College in Massachusetts, US, and is currently working with a Pakistani woman filmmaker.
Arrigan, Mary
Mary Arrigan studied at the National College of Art and Design in Dublin, University College, Dublin and Florence University. She taught art for 18 years before starting to write for children. She was awarded the International Youth Library (Munich) White Ravens title in 1997, the Bisto Merit Award in 2000 and has also won The Sunday Times Crime Writers Association Short Story Award and The Hennessy Short Story Award. .....
Aschwanden, Christie
Christie Aschwanden is a journalist, essayist and poultry farmer in Cedaredge, Colorado. Her writing has appeared in more than 60 publications including the New York Times, Reader’s Digest and New Scientist. She raises an assortment of free-range chickens, heritage turkeys, guinea fowl, ducks and geese at the Crag Crest Poultry Ranch and Farm.
Ashbery, John
John Ashbery is the author of twenty books of poetry, including Self-Portrait in a Convex Mirror (1975), which received the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry, the National Book Critics Circle Award, and the National Book Award; and Some Trees (1956), which was selected by W. H. Auden for the Yale Younger Poets Series. He has also published art criticism, plays, and a novel. Ashbery is currently the Charles P. .....
Ashe FitzGerald, Mairead
Mairead Ashe FitzGerald was born in the parish of Columcille in Longford and grew up in County Clare. A former teacher of Irish and History, she studied archaeology and Irish and has a lifelong, profound interest in the Early Irish period and traditions.
Ashley, Bernard
Bernard Ashley is a former head teacher who is now writing full-time. He lives in South London where he was born. Bernard's impressive list of titles reflects 35 years of writing realistic fiction – from picture books right up to teenage novels. Several of Bernard's books have been successfully televised and he has frequently appeared on prize lists – his Little Soldier was short-listed for the Guardian Prize in 2000. .....
Ashley, Chris
Chris Ashley, the son of children's book writer Bernard Ashley, was born in south-east London and his childhood was dominated by sport and children's books. He trained as a teacher and began writing in the 1980s. He is the head teacher of a school in Bury.
Assisi, Francis of
Saint Francis of Assisi (1181/2–1226) was born Francesco Bernadone, the son of a rich merchant. While a young prisoner-of-war in Perugia he started to experience visions of Christ and in 1210 founded an order of friars known as the Franciscans, who took a vow of poverty. His rejection of the Church's worldliness and his love of nature earned him an enormous following throughout Europe. Music played a large part in his life and Canticle of Brother Sun is his most well-known composition.
Attlee, Helena
Helena Attlee is an author and journalist who has made the garden and its history her special subject. Her books include The Gardens of Portugal Italian Gardens: A Cultural History and Gardens of Wales (all publishd by Frances Lincoln). She lectures widely, writes for a wide range of journals and magazines, and leads specialist garden tours. She lives in Presteigne, Powys, with her husband, the photographer Alex Ramsay.
Auden, W. H.
W. H. Auden (1907–1973) was born in North Yorkshire, England, the son of a doctor. He studied at Oxford and published his first book, Poems, in 1930, immediately establishing himself as one of the outstanding voices of his generation. Auden emigrated to New York in 1939, where he became a US citizen and converted to Anglicanism. He wrote essays, critical studies, plays, and opera librettos for such composers as Benjamin Britten, Igor Stravinsky, and Hans Werner Henze, as well as the poems for which he is most famous.
Auel, Jean M.
Jean M. Auel is the international best-selling author of the Earth's Children series, which includes The Clan of the Cave Bear and The Mammoth Hunters.
Auerbach, Erich
Erich Auerbach (1892–1957) was born in Berlin, educated at the Universities of Heidelberg and Greifswald, and served in the German army during World War I. A professor at the University of Marburg, Auerbach fled Hitler's Germany in 1933 for Istanbul, where his encyclopedic knowledge of literature allowed him to compose his great study of realism, Mimesis, largely from memory. In 1947 he moved to the United States, where he taught at Pennsylvania State and Yale Universities.
Austen, Jane
Jane Austen (1775 - 1817) was a major English novelist, whose brilliantly witty, elegantly structured satirical fiction marks the transition in English literature from 18th century neo-classicism to 19th century romanticism. Born in the village of Steventon, near Basingstoke, in Hampshire. The seventh of eight children, she was the daughter of a clergyman and part of a close-knit family. In 1801 the family moved to Bath until the death of her father. .....
Auster, Paul
Paul Auster is the author of ten novels, most recently The Book of Illusions. He lives with his wife and daughter in Brooklyn, NY.
Averill, Esther
Esther Averill (1902-1992) began her career as a storyteller drawing cartoons for her local newspaper. After graduating from Vassar College in 1923, she moved first to New York City and then to Paris, where she founded her own publishing company. The Domino Press introduced American readers to artists from all over the world, including Feodor Rojankovsky, who later won a Caldecott Award. In 1941, Esther Averill returned to the United States and found a job in the New York Public Library while continuing her work as a publisher. .....
