David Day was born in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada on October 14, 1947. He worked in logging camps before receiving a degree from the Department of Creative Writing at the University of Victoria in 1976. He has written over 40 books of poetry, ecology, history, fantasy, mythology, and fiction for both adults and children. His first collection of poems, The Cowichan, was published in 1975. His other books include A Tolkien Bestiary, The Doomsday Book of Animals, Castles, The Emperor's Panda, The Quest for King Arthur, Nevermore: A Book of Hours, and Tolkien: A Dictionary. Through the 1980's and 1990's, he was also an environmental columnist for Britain's Daily Mail, Evening Standard,… Sunday Times, and Punch magazine.
Alan Lee is the illustrator of the highly-successful centenary edition of 'The Lord of the Rings' and diamond edition of 'The Hobbit'. He studied graphic design and the depiction of Celtic and Norse myths and has illustrated a wide range of books, including 'Faeries', 'Merlin Dreams' and 'Castles', and was conceptual designer for Terry Jones' film 'Erik the Viking'. He was awarded the Kate Greenaway Medal for his illustrated edition of 'Black Ships Before Troy'.