'Johnson's writing is witty and inventive ... This is a book full of fun' -- Sunday Times Children's Book of the Week 20040815 'Thora is an irresistible new character ... storytelling at its best.' -- Starred review, Publishing News 20040815 'Thora is a thoroughly modern heroine in a fantasy adventure story with a pleasantly old-fashioned feel to it ... Gillian Johnson's own illustrations add to the book's charm.' -- Books for Keeps 20041101 'Wonderfully inventive and witty - the sort of book that gladdens the heart' -- Children's Bookseller and Publisher, Austra 20041101

Gillian Johnson studied science and English at university. She's had lots of different jobs - working with Indian children in northern Canada, accompanying Inuit babies on small planes to their homes in remote communities, doing editorial cartoons for the university paper, teaching English to high school students. Eventually, she published a children's book and has been doing it ever since. She lives with her family and divides her time between Oxford and Tasmania.