Michael Bedard

Michael Bedard is a Canadian children's writer and winner of the Governor General's Award for Children's Literature. He was born and raised in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. He graduated from the University of Toronto in 1971 with a BA in philosophy and English. He began writing when his former high school teacher showed him works of Emily Dickinson and T. S. Eliot. Michael Bedard is the critically acclaimed author of several award-winning books for young readers. His novels include Stained Glass, A Darker Magic, Painted Devil, The Green Man, and Redwork, which received the Governor General's Literary Award and the Canadian Library Association's Book of the Year for Children Award. He has also written several acclaimed picture books, including The Clay Ladies, which received the Municipal Chapter of Toronto IODE Book Award. His major work of non-fiction, William Blake: The Gates of Paradise, attests to his passionate interest in poets and poetry. Bedard currently lives in Toronto with his wife Martha. He has four children and six grandchildren.