Barbara Smucker was born in Newton, Kansas on September first 1915. Barbara has lived in New Jersey, Illinois, England, and Missippi. In 1969, she and her husband moved to Waterloo, Ontario, where she worked as a children's librarian, and pursued her interest in history, writing about dramatic but little-known historical events for the benefit of children. Her books include Henry's Red Sea, Underground to Canada, Jacobs little Giant, Selina and the Bear Paw Quit, and Selina and the Shoe-Fly Pie.
Janet Wilson is renowned for a particular talent for drawing children. Her realistic style and sensitivity to the nuances of facial expressions help young readers grasp subjects ranging from dealing with death, the arrival of a new baby, the tragedy of war or just wishing your new dress was a different colour. That same sensitivity shows up in her commissioned portraits in oil paints on fine Dutch portait linen. Her love of painting is also evident in her Still Life artwork.