Sara A. Fajardo first discovered the power of words when she was four. Newly arrived in the United States from her native Peru, her English vocabulary consisted of the word "monkey," which she promptly turned into her favorite greeting, "Hola Monkey!" The amused reaction to that phrase started her on a lifelong path of telling stories--first as a photojournalist, then as a multimedia storyteller for humanitarian aid organizations, and now as a writer for children. She grew up in the agricultural community of Salinas, California, and has lived in Finland, Japan, and Kenya. Sara currently resides in the San Francisco Bay Area, with her husband, two children, and very playful cat.
Juana Martinez-Neal is the Peruvian-born daughter and granddaughter of painters. Her debut as an author-illustrator,
Alma and How She Got Her Name, was awarded a Caldecott Honor, and
Zonia's Rain Forest was named an ALA Top 10 Sustainability-themed Children's Book. She illustrated
New York Times bestselling picture book
Tomatoes for Neela by Padma Lakshmi;
Fry Bread: A Native American Family Story by Kevin Noble Maillard, which won a Robert F. Sibert Medal; and
La Princesa and the Pea by Susan M. Elya, for which she won a Pura Belpré Illustrator Award. She also co-illustrated with Molly Idle
I Don't Care by Julie Fogliano. Juana Martinez-Neal lives in Connecticut with her family.
