Ginger Park is an award-winning author of several children’s books as well as adult fiction. Forthcoming books include a memoir and a cookbook (Thomas Dunne, St. Martin’s Press). Ginger’s writing journey began when she was sixteen after her dad’s untimely death. Her only comforts were writing in her journal, nibbling Hershey Kisses by the bag, and unearthing the stories of her dad’s insufferable childhood in Korea during the Japanese Occupation. Ginger documented these stories in her journal; so it should come as no surprise that many of her books are inspired by the star in her life - her dad. Her first attempt at a picture book was called A Boy on A Rock about a little Korean boy who dreams of a better life. The manuscript never saw the light of day, but that little Korean boy shines in her historical novel To Swim Across the World (Hyperion). When Ginger isn’t writing, she’s visiting schools, spending precious time with her family, and luxuriating in a global selection of chocolates at her boutique, Chocolate Chocolate, in downtown Washington, DC. Visit her at parksisters.com or chocolatedc.com.