Maxine Trottier was born in Grosse Pointe Farms, Michigan on May 3, 1950. She moved to Windsor, Ontario in Canada with her family ten years later. In 1974 she became a Canadian citizen; she holds U.S. citizenship as well. She attended several years of school at Ardmore Elementary in St. Clair Shores, Michigan, but her education was completed in Canada. She is a graduate of the University of Western Ontario. Maxine was an elementary school teacher for 31 years, and it was only after retiring that she began to write children's books.
Born in Montreal, Annouchka Gravel Galouchko has lived with her family in Iran, Egypt, Mexico, and Austria. She trained in fine arts at the University of Quebec and started her career as a full-time painter. Her book "Sho et les dragons d'eau" received the Governor General's Literary Award for Children's Literature for its illustrations and was a finalist in the French text competition. Her fanciful and rich imagination is reflected in her paintings and her writings. She also loves music.