Barbara Nickel grew up in Saskatchewan and has taught Creative Writing at the University of British Columbia. She has published acclaimed books for both adults and young people. Her children's titles include Hannah Waters and the Daughter of Johann Sebastian Bach, which won a B.C. Book Prize and was shortlisted for the Governor General's Award, as well as a picture book, A Boy Asked the Wind, which was a finalist for the Ruth and Sylvia Schwartz Children's Book Award. Barbara lives in Yarrow, British Columbia, with her husband and two sons.