Robin McKinley was born in 1952, in Ohio, and since her father was in the navy, she traveled a great deal. One of her greatest enjoyments as a child was reading. She started writing and went to college. Then her first novel "Beauty, a retelling of Beauty and the Beast" was accepted for publication in 1978. Since then, she has moved to England with her husband Peter Dickinson, who is also a writer.

Aside from writing, she loves grand opera and long walks, which she claims keeps the blood flowing and her imagination limber. She has written five novels, two books of short stories and a few picture books for children. Out of all of her works, my favorite is certainly "Beauty".