Born in London in 1942, Colin Thompson has worked as a silk-screen printer, graphic designer, stage manager and BBC documentary maker. Since he started writing and illustrating children's books in 1990, Colin has had more than 40 books published. He has received several awards, including an Aurealis Award for the novel HOW TO LIVE FOREVER and the CBC Picture Book of the Year in 2006 for THE SHORT AND INCREDIBLY HAPPY LIFE OF RILEY. He has been shortlisted for many other awards, including the Astrid Lindgren Award - the most prestigious children's literature prize in the world. Colin lives in Bellingen, Australia. His books with Random House Australia include HOW TO LIVE FOREVER, numerous picture books, THE FLOODS series, and THE BIG LITTLE BOOK OF HAPPY SADNESS picture book (released 2008).