Kevin Young is the Andrew W. Mellon Director of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture. He is also the poetry editor of the New Yorker and an award-winning poet who has been a National Book Award finalist, a Los Angeles Times Book Prize finalist, and a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award. Emile and the Field is his first book for children. Follow him on Twitter at @deardarkness.

Chioma Ebinama is a Nigerian American fine artist whose work has exhibited internationally. Her journey as an artist began with children's books; as a kid she learned to draw by copying popular picture book and cartoon characters found in her local library. Emile and the Field is the first picture book that she has illustrated. It's particularly meaningful to her since she's always been enchanted by stories of outdoor adventures but never saw characters that looked like her truly enjoying the outdoors. After traveling all over the world, Chioma currently lives in Athens, Greece, where she enjoys soaking up the sunlight with her little dog, Luna. Follow her on Instagram at @chiomaaaaaa.