Swati Avasthi has been writing fiction since she read Little House in the Big Woods at age five. Emily Bronte, Harper Lee, and many others furthered her addiction. She institutionalized her habit at the University of Chicago (B.A.) and at the University of Minnesota (M.F.A.). SPLIT, her debut novel, received the 2011 International Reading Association Award, the 2011 Cybils award, a 2010 Silver Parent's Choice Award, and the New Mexico State Book Award. It was also nominated for eleven other state awards and has been translated into four languages. So she's pretty much been hanging out in the Cloud Nine District. Her second novel, CHASING SHADOWS, hits the shelves in 2013.She lives in Minneapolis, MN with her two kids, two dogs, and one (but worth two) husband(s).Visit her at www.swatiavasthi.com