Barry Jonsberg was born in Liverpool, England, and now lives in Darwin with his wife, children and two dogs - Jai and Zac. Both hounds chewed over the original manuscript of The Dog that Dumped on My Doona and buried it somewhere in the garden. Despite bribes, they have refused to reveal its whereabouts. Barry has written several novels for young adults, all of which have been published to great acclaim. The Whole Business with Kiffo and the Pitbull was shortlisted for the CBCA Book of the Year (Older Readers) in 2005. His second book, It's Not All About You, Calma! won the Adelaide Festival Award for Children's Literature. Dreamrider was shortlisted for the 2007 NSW Premier's Award. All of this has convinced Barry he is a smartypants. His dogs, however, are equally convinced he is a sad loser and that the time he spends in front of a computer would be much better employed walking on the beach.