Anna Perera was born in London to an Irish mother and Sri Lankan father. She worked as an English teacher in secondary schools in London before running a unit for excluded boys. She has an MA in children’s writing and has had several children’s books published in the UK.
Perera had never considered writing for teens until she attended a benefit for Reprieve, a human rights organization. There she learned about the plight of children held at Guantanamo Bay and was instantly compelled to write the novel Guantanamo Boy. The book was shortlisted for the Costa Children’s Book Award and nominated for the Carnegie Medal in England.
Her second book for teens, The Glass Collector, is set in Cairo, Egypt. Though she has enjoyed creating books for younger readers, Perera says she feels completely at home writing YA novels and will continue to work in this genre long after her reading glasses are fitted with telescopic lenses.