David Sedaris was born in Binghamton, New York on December 26, 1956, but he grew up in Raleigh, North Carolina. Much of Sedaris' humor is autobiographical and self-deprecating, and it often concerns his family life, his middle class upbringing in the suburbs of North Carolina. He graduated from the Art Institute of Chicago in 1987. He is a popular radio commentator, essayist, and short story writer. He held many part-time and odd jobs before getting a job reading excerpts from his diaries on National Public Radio in 1992. His first collection of essays and short stories, Barrel Fever, was published in 1994. His other works include Naked, Holidays on Ice, Dress Your Family in Corduroy and… Denim, When You Are Engulfed in Flames, and Squirrel Seeks Chipmunk: A Modest Bestiary. Me Talk Pretty One Day won the Thurber Prize for American Humor in 2001. He has also written several plays with his sister Amy Sedaris including Stump the Host, Stitches, and The Little Frieda Mysteries. In 2014 her title, Let's Explore Diabetes with Owls, made The New York Times Best Seller List.
Ian Falconer was born in Ridgefield, Connecticut on August 25, 1959. He studied art history at New York University and painting at Parsons School of Design and Otis Art Institute. He is a writer and artist who has illustrated many covers of The New Yorker magazine. He has also designed sets and costumes for the New York City Ballet, the San Francisco Opera, and the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden. Olivia, his first children's picture book, received many awards including the Caldecott Honor in 2001. He has published several more picture books about Olivia including Olivia Saves the Circus, Olivia Forms a Band, Olivia Helps with Christmas, and Olivia Goes to Venice. He also illustrated… Squirrel Seeks Chipmunk: A Modest Bestiary by author David Sedaris.