J. Patrick Lewis is the author of 60 books for children, 50 of them in poetry. He is also the coauthor of three terrific children and four delightful grandchildren. He writes full-time, makes 30 elementary school visits a year, and keynotes at literature conferences. First Dog is his first book with his daughter Beth. Pat, or Grandpat, as his grandkids call him, is married and lives in Westerville, Ohio.

Christopher Denise is an award-winning illustrator whose books haveappeared on The New York Times best-sellers list. Known for his workon the Redwall picture book series, he also works as a visual developmentartist and character designer for feature film animation. Christopher livesin Barrington, Rhode Island.