Thalia Kalkipsakis grew up on a farm on the outskirts of Melbourne with a mum who tried to save battery hens by on-selling them as backyard chickens. Her dad worked as an industrial chemist while also growing strawberries, carrots and Christmas trees on the farm. It was not unusual to find plant shoots in the freezer, or the hair dryer missing because it was needed to heat one of her dad’s experiments. Thalia’s childhood showed her the magic that can happen when science and nature combine with human creativity.
In 1996 her first book was published, called Connect to the Net. It’s now so out-of-date that in one school it was transferred to a ‘technology museum’ – a fact that makes her chuckle, and marvel at how much the world has changed in 20 years. Since then, Thalia has published 20 books for children and young adults.
She lives in regional Victoria with her husband, their two children and two black cats.