Shakirah Bourne is an award-winning Barbadian author and filmmaker. She once shot a movie scene in a cave with bats during an earthquake, but is too scared to watch horror movies. Her middle grade fantasy, JOSEPHINE AGAINST THE SEA was published by Scholastic in 2021, received starred reviews in Kirkus and Booklist, and was a School Library Journal Best Book of 2021.

Foto: Danielle Dottin