Jean Marzollo was born Jean Martin in Manchester, Connecticut on June 25, 1942. She graduated from the University of Connecticut in 1964, and received a master's degree in teaching from the Harvard Graduate School of Education in 1965. After graduating, she taught high school English for several years and then became involved in educational publishing. She was the editor of Scholastic's kindergarten magazine Let's Find Out for twenty years. Her first book for parents, Learning Through Play, was published in 1972 and her first children's book, Close Your Eyes, was published in 1978. She wrote over 150 books for children and has illustrated some of her own children's books starting in 2003. Her works include the I Spy series; Soccer Sam; Mama Mama/Papa Papa; Close Your Eyes; Happy Birthday, Martin Luther King; and the Shanna Show books. She died in her sleep of natural causes on April 10, 2018 at the age of 75.
Walter Wick grew up in a rural part of Connecticut. His first serious interest in art began with drawings and painting in high school. He went on to study photography at Paier College of Art in Hamden, Connecticut. After graduating in 1973, he worked as a lab technician and assistant to a commercial photographer. Eventually, Wick moved to New York City and started his own photography studio. He stumbled upon a particular photo that led to the creation of his popular children's books, "I Spy" which are optical illusion picture books. He has also written "A Drop of Water: A Book of Science and Wonder" and "Walter Wick's Optical Tricks."
