Joan Lingard is a versatile and prolific author whose novels for children and adults turn upon challenging themes, often the struggle for individual freedom in the face of social conflict and fragmentation. Belfast, where she lived from the age of two to eighteen, is the setting for The File on Fraulein Berg (1980), Dark Shadows (1998) and the 'Kevin and Sadie quintet', in which the young protagonists form relationships across the religious divide. The 'Maggie quartet' is set in Glasgow and the Highlands of Scotland, while The Gooseberry (1978), Rags and Riches (1988) and Glad Rags (1990) are set in Edinburgh, where Joan Lingard was born and now lives. Her husband's experiences in the contrasting cultures of Latvia and Canada has inspired several novels, including After Colette (1993). Natasha's Will (2000) moves between the Russian Revolution and the comparatively mild political transition that is taking place in contemporary Scotland. Joan Lingard has won a number of major awards for children's writing, and was awarded an MBE in 1998.
