"I think the one story that inspired this book was meeting a wonderful man called Don Mertin in New Zealand and he explaining to me how he had saved a species of bird called a Black Robin when there were just seven individuals left in the world of which only two were female and only one of whom was fertile."

VOA: special.2009.11.18

I think it is a combination of a very,very distinct special language on one hand and then on the other, she has really a story to tell about growing up in a dictatorship but also growing up as a minority in another country and also growing up sort of a stranger for your own family.

VOA: standard.2009.10.08

Authorities say they quickly killed two of the gunmen, but two others continued to fire machine guns in the extended battle in Pul-i-Alam, Witnesses say U.S.military helicopters were part of the response force, and one aircraft fired a rocket into a multi-story building which the insurgents had seized, used to launch their attack and had rigged with explosives.

VOA: standard.2009.08.10