Mónica Leal da Silva was born in Lisbon, Portugal, and educated at the University of Lisbon. She has taught Portuguese language and literature at the elementary, secondary, and university levels for over twenty years. Since emigrating to the United States, she has taught at Princeton University and Michigan State University. Mónica Silva is the author of three acclaimed works of children's literature, as well as works of cultural criticism, published in Portugal. She has also translated works of historical scholarship in the United States and the U.K. In addition to teaching and writing, Mónica Silva has contributed to published forums on social and educational issues.
Liam Matthew Brockey is an historian of Early Modern Europe, and a specialist in the history of Roman Catholicism and the Society of Jesus. Educated at the University of Notre Dame and Brown University, he has written extensively on Jesuit missions in China, Japan, and India, as well as on the Portuguese empire. He is the author of two monographs, Journey to the East: The Jesuit Mission to China, 1579-1724 and The Visitor: André Palmeiro and the Jesuits in Asia, and many journal articles. Liam Matthew Brockey recently served as President of the American Catholic Historical Association, and was elected to the Academia Portuguesa da História.