Bio

Mem Fox was born in Australia, grew up in Africa, studied drama in England, and returned to Adelaide, Australia in 1970. She is Australia’s best loved picture-book author. Her first book, Possum Magic, has sold over four million copies and is still the best selling children’s book in Australia, 29 years after its publication.

She has written more than 40 books for children among which are the perennial favorites: Time for Bed, Whoever You Are, and The Magic Hat; and several books for adults also, including her best selling book for parents: Reading Magic: Why Reading Aloud to Our Children Will Change Their Lives Forever. Her picture book: Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes was on the New York Times bestseller list for 18 weeks in 2008-2009 and also won best book for young children at the 2010 Turin International Book Festival in its Italian edition. Her books have been translated into 19 languages.

Mem Fox was an Associate Professor of Education at Flinders University in Adelaide, Australia, where she taught teachers for 24 years until her early retirement in 1996. She has received many honors and awards from various Australian governments and other organizations for services to literature, as well as three honorary doctorates for her work in literacy. She has visited the USA over 100 times as both a consultant in literacy and as an author, and she hopes to return for many more visits yet.