DAVID ZELTSER emigrated with his family from the former Soviet Union at age five. After graduating from Harvard with a degree in physics, he was admitted to vet school to study wildlife medicine, but ultimately came back to his first love--storytelling. David and his friend Julia Chiapella cofounded the Santa Cruz Young Writers Program's tutoring and writing center at the Museum of Art & History. He lives in Santa Cruz, California, with his wife, Fiona; their daughter, Naomi; and their dog, Ella.

RAUL COLON is the illustrator of numerous highly acclaimed children's books, including Tomas and the Library Lady and Dona Flor, and has received Gold and Silver Medals from the Society of Illustrators.