Meg Rosoff

American-born, London-based author. In August 2004, she published her first novel, "How I Live Now." A bestseller for young-adults, it’s the tale of a young girl caught in a war. The book won the prestigious 2004 Guardian Children’s Fiction Prize. After college, Rosoff spent 10 years in New York working in publishing and advertising. After she married English painter Paul Hamlyn, they moved to London in 1989. The couple has a 7-year old daughter. Rosoff said the drive to write her book arose out of sadness. In 1996, Rosoff’s youngest sister Debby was diagnosed with breast cancer and died in 2001. Another sister was diagnosed, and as Rosoff faced these challenges, the world look different to her. She said “something in my head went ‘bing’ and it was carpe diem—seize the day. Life is short and if you don’t do what you want to do, you won’t be around forever. In July 2004, just before the book was published, she herself was diagnosed with breast cancer. “My mission is to get well and write the next book.”