Sylvain Trudel is a French-Canadian writer of adult fiction and more than a dozen children's titles. He earned degrees in science and cinema and worked as a clown, a cucumber picker, and a commercial analyst, before turning to writing. His debut novel, Le Souffle de l'Harmattan (The Harmattan Winds), won both the Prix Molson and Prix Canada-Suisse. His work has been honored with the Prix Saint-Exupéry, Prix des libraires du Quebec, and Prix Christie, and in 2007 his novel Le Mer de la tranquilité won the Governor General's Prize. He lives in Quebec.

Donald Winkler is a documentary filmmaker and literary translator. He graduated from the University of Manitoba in 1961. He has translated over forty works from French, including novels, nonfiction, and poetry and has won the Governor General's Award for translation in 1994, 2011, and 2013. His translations include work by Pierre Nepveu, Samuel Archibald, and Kevin Lambert.