Mary D. Lankford was the director of library services for the Texas Education Agency and received many awards, among them the Texas Library Association Distinguished Service Award. Her informational books for children include Christmas USA, Christmas Around the World, and Jacks Around the World. Karen Dugan received a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the Parsons School of Design. Her artwork has been called "warm" (ALA Booklist) and "vibrant" (The Horn Book) and has appeared in publications such as Cricket magazine. Books she has illustrated include Mr. Tuggle's Troubles and Mary D. Lankford's Christmas USA. She lives in North Attleboro, Massachusetts.