Gertrude Chandler Warner was born in 1890 in Putnam, Connecticut, where she later taught school. She wrote The Boxcar Children because she had often imagined how delightful it would be to live in a caboose or freight car. Encouraged by the book&;s success, she went on to write eighteen more stories about the Alden children.

Gertrude Chandler Warner grew up in Putnam, Connecticut. She wrote The Boxcar Children because she had always dreamed about what it would be like to live in a caboose or a freight car—just as the Aldens do. When readers asked for more adventures, Warner wrote more books—a total of nineteen in all. After her death, other authors have continued to write stories about Henry, Jessie, Violet, and Benny Alden, and today The Boxcar Children® series has more than one hundred books.

Anthony VanArsdale was born and raised near the beaches of south Alabama and to this day enjoys the warm southern temperatures of the Gulf Coast. He has worked as a professional illustrator since 2004, combining traditional and digital media to create illustrations with a "stylized realism." Among his favorite subjects to paint are animals, people, and illustrations that reflect the natural setting of his home.