Claire Mackay was born in Toronto, Canada in 1930. She received an Honors B.A. in political science from the University of Toronto. She did postgraduate work in social work and rehabilitation counseling at the University of British Columbia and at the University of Manitoba. She published her first book Mini-Bike Hero in 1974. During her lifetime, she wrote nine more fiction and non-fiction titles. She received several awards including the Ruth Schwartz Award with co-author Marsha Hewitt for their YA novel One Proud Summer in 1982 and the Vicki Metcalf Award for an outstanding body of work in children's literature. In 1977, she along with Jean Little and nine other artists working in the field founded the Canadian Society of Children's Authors Illustrators and Performers. She died on August 11, 2013.
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