Margaret Buffie is a popular Canadian author of fiction for young adults. She writes lively and entertaining ghost stories that combine elements of fantasy and reality; her books often fit into the traditional time-travel genre. The main characters in Buffie's novels are contemporary adolescent girls coping with family problems. These young women stumble onto a supernatural world that offers them solace from their troubles. Critics have praised the author for her ability to combine separate storylines and various images into coherent tales. Buffie won the Young Adult Canadian Book Award in 1987-88, and her works have been cited by prestigious Canadian and American literary associations.

Buffie's own life has had a noticeable impact on the plots of her novels. She was born on March 29, 1945, in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, one of four daughters of Ernest and Evelyn Buffie. The family spent many summers at Long Pine Lake in Ontario...