Alain Mabanckou is one of francophone Africa's most prolific contemporary writers. Twice, he has been a finalist for the Man Booker International Prize. Born in the Republic of Congo, he is now professor at the University of California, Los Angeles. Nancy Naomi Carlson is a writer and translator who has published eleven books, most recently An Infusion of Violets, also published by Seagull Books. She is professor of counseling at Walden University.