Prudence E. Breitrose

Prudence Breitrose was born in England and went to Girton College, Cambridge where she co-edited the student magazine Granta. She began her career in journalism, with stints in television, on a newspaper, and on children's magazines. In California she switched to health education writing, persuading the public not to get heart disease. The first of her middle-grade novels, "Mousenet," came about after a dream that confused computer mice with the real thing; the characters insisted on more books, so "Mousemobile" and "Mouse Mission" followed, also published by Hyperion-Disney. Now she has switched from mice to gerbils with her new novel, "Zapped."