Masha Bell

Thanks to Hitler, Masha was born in Germany, but when she was three her mother returned to Lithuania. Masha's first language was therefore German, but from 7 to 15 she was educated in Lithuanian and Russian, and did not start to learn English until she was 14. She was then returned to Germany and began to study English intensively. She was hoping to become a writer and use the language which was most widely spoken and understood. In 1964, aged 20, she came to London as an au-pair. After marriage, children, a degree in philosophy and psychology and 18 years of teaching English and modern languages, ill health finally gave her time to write.