Valerie HelpsValerie Helps was born in London and grew up in East Africa. Widely travelled, she has lived in Australia, Greece and France for extensive periods and has established herself as a successful travel writer and illustrator. Her short stories, poetry an children's stories have been published in journals and newspapers worldwide. Valerie worked for many years in Australia with youth orchestras and was Orchestra Manager in the Sydney Opera House before moving to Crete with members of her family. Later she left for France with Geoffrey and spent the summers on their canal boat, de Villehardouin. She now lives near her family in Sydney. Read More Read Less