Wendy Orr

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Wendy Orr is a Canadian-born Australian writer born in Edmonton, Alberta. She is probably best known as the author of Nim's Island, which was made into a film in 2008 starring Jodie Foster, Abigail Breslin and Gerard Butler.^[1] In 1995, she received the CBCA Book of the Year, Younger Readers award.

Orr moved to Australia at the age of 21 and now lives in Victoria, on the Mornington Peninsula on a few acres of bushland. She has previously worked as an occupational therapist.^[2] In 1991 Orr suffered terrible injuries including a broken neck and two broken ankles when her car was hit by a car travelling at high speed. She spent the next five years dealing with the pain and walking with a cane. It took 15 years to recover but now she is well again. She says, " Readers borrow courage and resilience from books.” Qualities Orr has displayed herself creating a huge body of work during her recovery.^[3]