Jan-Philipp Sendker, born in Hamburg in 1960, was the American correspondent for Stern from 1990 to 1995, and its Asian correspondent from 1995 to 1999. In 2000 he published Cracks in the Wall, a nonfiction book about China. The Art of Hearing Heartbeats, his first novel, is an international best seller. He lives in Berlin with his family.

Lorie Karnath is an author, explorer, and lecturer. She was the 37th president of The Explorers Club, and founded The Explorers Museum, a not for profit entity dedicated to preserving and fostering exploration and discovery. She has written numerous books and articles on the sciences, exploration and the arts.

Jonathan Sendker spent a gap year in Myanmar, traveling, doing volunteer work and collecting stories for this book. Upon his return home, he assisted in compiling and formulating the manuscript. Jonathan now studies Liberal Arts & Sciences in Utrecht, the Netherlands.

Lisa Liesener has been translating for almost twenty years and took special pleasure in embarking on a journey filled with spirits, dragons and talking animals. She lived and studied in Germany while completing an engineering degree at the University of Applied Sciences Stuttgart and frequently travels back to visit friends and relatives. Currently, she lives in Connecticut with her family where, when not translating, she directs children's programs at a non-profit organization she co-founded in order to promote education and connection with the natural world.

Kevin Wiliarty has a BA in German from Harvard and a PhD from the University of California, Berkeley. A native of the United States, he has also lived in Germany and Japan. He is currently a Web developer at Hampshire College in Amherst, Massachusetts. He lives in Connecticut with his wife and two children, and also plays bass in a string band.