CHRISTOBEL MATTINGLEY has always loved the sea and its creatures. She was born at Brighton, South Australia, within sound of the sea. She lived by the beach until she was eight and loves beachcombing. Christobel also loves islands and has visited many off Australia’s coast. She was enchanted by the sight of turtles swimming in the clear waters off Broome in Western Australia and has spent months in Queensland watching the turtles which come to Great Barrier Reef islands to lay their eggs. Chelonia Green, Champion of Turtles was inspired by visits to a special island off the Capricorn Coast, where she was shocked by the amount of jetsam from passing boats which littered the beautiful beaches. At school her headmistress taught the students not to litter, and ever since Christobel has always picked up other peoples’ rubbish when walking on the beach or in the bush.

Christobel’s writing career began with her love of nature and she was ten when her first pieces were published in the children’s pages of the magazine Wild Life. Her first book, The Picnic Dog, was published in 1970. Her first story to be accepted, Windmill at Magpie Creek, runner-up for the Children’s Book Council Book of the Year Award in 1972, has appeared in four editions and two translations. Her belief that one person can make a difference also shows in many of her books, as in The Battle of the Galah Trees, and Lizard Log.

Battle Order 204, the moving story of her husband David’s experiences as a bomber pilot in World War 2, was published in 2007 to great acclaim. Chelonia Green, Champion of Turtles is the 47th book from this award-winning, well-loved author.