Aida Edemariam, whose father is Ethiopian and mother Canadian, grew up in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia,. She studied English literature at Oxford University and the University of Toronto, and has worked as a journalist in New York (Harper's Magazine), Toronto, and London, where she is a senior feature writer and editor for The Guardian. Her first book, The Wife's Tale, was named a Finalist for the prestigious Governor General's Award for Nonfiction in Canada. Aida Edemariam lives in Oxford.