Patricia Coombs (born in Los Angeles, California, July 23, 1926) is the author and illustrator of many children's picture books, including the popular Dorrie the Little Witch series. “Of her childhood, she says, ‘I was forever being told to get my nose out of a book and go outside. As a result I ended up reading in odd places where I wouldn’t be noticed—behind my brother’s mice cages, under lilac bushes. The smells of mice and lilacs to this day evoke certain stories.’” [1] She attended DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana, and received her B.A. (1947) and M.A. (1950) in English literature from the University of Washington. She first started writing and illustrating stories for her two daughters, the youngest of which, together with a Siamese cat named Dingbat, became the inspiration for Dorrie and her cat Gink.[2]