Solovyov and Larionov

Eugene Vodolazkin was born in Kiev in 1964. An expert in Old Russian literature, Vodolazkin has worked in the department of Old Russian Literature at Pushkin House since 1990. He has numerous academic books and articles to his name, and has been awarded research and lectureship fellowships in Germany from both the Toepfer and Alexander von Humboldt Foundations. Vodolazkin's debut novel, Solovyov and Larionov, was shortlisted for the Andrei Bely Prize and The Big Book Prize. Laurus is Vodolazkin's second novel. It won both of Russia's major literary awards, The Book Book Prize and the Yasnaya Polyana Award. Vodolazkin lives with his family in St Petersburg, Russia.

Lisa Hayden is a freelance translator and editor. Her translation of Eugene Vodolazkin’s Laurus won the Read Russia Prize for Contemporary Literature in 2016 and was shortlisted for the Oxford-Weidenfeld Translation Prize the same year. She lives in Maine.

Stefan Rudnicki is an award winning audiobook narrator, director and producer. He was born in Poland and now resides in Studio City, California. He has narrated more than three hundred audiobooks and has participated in over a thousand as a writer, producer, or director. He is a recipient of multiple Audie Awards and AudioFile Earphones Awards as well as a Grammy Award, a Bram Stoker Award, and a Ray Bradbury Award. He received AudioFile’s award for 2008 Best Voice in Science Fiction and Fantasy. Along with a cast of other narrators, Rudnicki has read a number of Orson Scott Card's best-selling science fiction novels. He worked extensively with many other science fiction authors, including David Weber and Ben Bova. In reviewing the twentieth anniversary edition audiobook of Card’s Ender's Game, Publishers Weekly stated, "Rudnicki, with his lulling, sonorous voice, does a fine job articulating Ender's inner struggle between the kind, peaceful boy he wants to be and the savage, violent actions he is frequently forced to take." Rudnicki is also a stage actor and director.