Matthew Kneale is the author of several books, including When We Were Romans, Rome: A History in Seven Sackings, and the novel English Passengers, which won the Whitbread Book of the Year Award and was shortlisted for the Booker Prize. He is a keen traveler and has lived in Japan, Canada, and Italy, where he's lived for over two decades, and has journeyed extensively across the globe. Kneale currently lives in Rome, Italy, with his wife and two children.