MICHEL FABER has written several other books, including the highly acclaimed The Crimson Petal and the White, the Whitbread-shortlisted novel Under the Skin, and The Book of Strange New Things. He has also written two novellas, The Hundred and Ninety-Nine Steps (2001) and The Courage Consort (2002), and has won several short-story awards, including the Neil Gunn, Ian St James and Macallan. Born in Holland, brought up in Australia, he now lives in the UK.