Tom Peek lived his early life on the Upper Mississippi on a backwaters island of Minnesota river folk, beaver, and ancient burial mounds. After hitchhiking by boat through the South Seas, he settled on Hawaiʻi Island more than three decades ago. There, he’s been a mountain and astronomy guide on Mauna Kea and an eruption ranger, firefighter, and exhibit writer on Kilauea, working closely with Hawaiian elders and cultural practitioners on both volcanoes. A nationally award-winning author and acclaimed writing teacher, he lives with his wife, artist Catherine Robbins, in a rainforest cottage near Kilauea’s erupting summit. John D. Dawson was raised in San Diego and has lived on Hawaiʻi Island for decades. A graduate of the Art Center School, Los Angeles, now the ArtCenter College of Design, Dawson has illustrated books for national publishers as well as stamps for the US Postal Service, including its entire Nature of America series. He’s also done commissions for the United Nations, National Park Service, National Geographic Society, National Wildlife Federation, and Audubon Society. His fine art watercolors and acrylics are represented by the Volcano Art Center gallery in Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park. Herb Kawainui Kane, celebrated Hawaiian artist, historian, and author, cofounded the Polynesian Voyaging Society and designed the Hokulea voyaging canoe, contributing profoundly to the Hawaiian Renaissance movement. A graduate of the Art Institute of Chicago, Kane depicted Hawaiian historical scenes realistically, but when painting spiritual or mythological aspects of the culture—as in Pele, the cover image of this book—his art was expressionistic, with bold brushwork and vivid colors.
