Sarah Gauch is a twenty-two-year resident of Egypt, where her husband’s family owns a 1000-acre olive farm in the Sahara desert, the inspiration behind “The Mushroom Lady.” Before writing full-time she worked as a journalist, covering the Middle East for Newsweek, The New York Times, The Christian Science Monitor and many other publications. Her first published short story appears in the latest issue of StoryQuarterly (#45). Viking Children’s Books recently published her book, Voyage to the Pharos, and will soon publish The Tomb Robber and King Tut.