<p>Isa Pearl Ritchie is a Wellington-based writer. As a child, she loved creating imaginary worlds. She grew up in the Waikato as a Pākehā child in a bicultural family and Māori was her first written language. She has completed a PhD on food sovereignty in Aotearoa. Her second novel, <em>Fishing for Māui,</em> was selected as one of the top books of 2018 in the New Zealand Listener and was a finalist in the NZ Booklovers Award for Best Adult Fiction Book 2019. <em>Awa and the Dreamrealm</em> is her first book for young people.</p>
