Pirkko Saisio (b. 1949) studied at the Finnish Theatre School, from which she graduated as an actress in 1975. Her novel Elämänmeno was published the same year. The book was awarded the J.H. Erkko Prize for the best first work of the year, and Saisio’s works have received many awards since then.

Among other prizes, she has received the Finlandia Prize for the novel “The Red Book of Farewells” in 2003. Saisio has also published novels under the names Jukka Larsson and Eva Wein. In addition to her novels, Saisio has written numerous plays and TV and film scripts. In addition to her work as an actress, Saisio is also a theatre director.