Kawai Strong Washburn was born and raised on the Hamakua coast of the Big Island of Hawai’i. His work has appeared in The Best American Non-required Reading, McSweeney’s and Mid-American Review, among others. He was selected as a 2015 Tin House Summer Scholar and 2015 Bread Loaf work-study scholar. He lives with his wife and daughter in the Bay Area of California. This is his first novel.