Darlene Pagán was born in Chicago, IL to a Puerto Rican father and a German/Czech mother. She earned a PhD in the Humanities and has published essays and poetry, including a full-length collection, Setting the Fires. Her creative and scholarly work reflects her deep interest in identity, language, culture, family, and the environment. She teaches at Pacific University in Oregon where she lives with her family, and enjoys the beach and the woods, where she still climbs trees. Lucía and the Sombra Trees is her debut children's book.