William Boyd was born in 1952 in Accra, Ghana, and grew up there and in Nigeria. His first novel, A Good Man in Africa, won the Whitbread First Novel Award and the Somerset Maugham Prize. His other novels include An Ice Cream War, Armadillo, Any Human Heart, Restless and Sweet Caress. His latest book is the short-story collection The Dreams of Bethany Mellmoth. He is married and divides his time between London and south west France.