A former teacher and a craftsperson, Bonnie Johnstone is originally from Quebec and now makes her home in Witless Bay, NL, the seaside community in which her book is set. She lives with her husband on a small farm, where they have gardens and two sheep, but no pigs. The Pig and the Dumpling is loosely inspired by an anecdote Bonnie discovered when researching Bygone Days of Witless Bay, an award-winning community history which she compiled with Maureen Walsh, on behalf of the Witless Bay Heritage Committee. The Pig and the Dumpling is her first children's book.