Mariano Azuela (1873–1952) studied medicine in Guadalajara and served during the revolution as a doctor with the forces of Pancho Villa, which gave him firsthand exposure to the events and characters that appear in The Underdogs.
Sergio Waisman (translator, notes) is the recipient of a National Endowment for the Arts Translation Award and is a professor of Spanish at George Washington University in Washington, D.C.
Carlos Fuentes (1928–2012, foreword) is the author of more than twenty books and the recipient of many awards, including Mexico’s National Prize in Literature, the Cervantes Prize, and the inaugural Latin Civilization Award.
