Margaret Dunkle grew up in southern California. She studied Librarianship at the University of California, Berkeley in the United States and completed her degree in Melbourne, Victoria. She worked as a specialist children's librarian in Victoria, as a lecturer and author and as a consultant on and reviewer of children's literature. While in Australia, Margaret Dunkle became an Australian citizen. She was made an Honorary Life Member of the the Victorian branch of the Children's Book Council of Australia.
Margaret Dunkle later moved to Bali. Saritaksu Editions began to publish Clean Bali, her series of trilingual (Balinese, Indonesian and English) children's environmental picture books (illustrated by Margiyono), in 2008.
Source: Al Hickey, 'Maggie Dunkle: Librarian, Editor & Children's Book Author', Bali Advertiser, 2010 (Sighted online 25/02/2010)