As a young girl, Laurel Neme dreamed of helping animals. At first, she wanted to be a large animal veterinarian and talk to the animals like Dr. Dolittle. Later, she wanted to be an animal scientist like Jane Goodall, and filled notebooks with observations about her goldfish. Eventually, she decided to help animals in her own way -- by telling their stories through books and news articles for National Geographic and others. She lives in Vermont with her husband, son, and super smart German shepherd, who is learning to do the laundry. To learn more, visit LaurelNeme.com.

Ariel Landy has been illustrating her whole life, starting with crayon portraits of her cats, dogs, and hamsters. While she may never have an elephant of her own, the honor of illustrating Chhouk was close enough. A Massachusetts native and former New Yorker, she currently lives in France with her husband and their rescue dog, where she can draw animals in her backyard to her heart's content.