Laura Vinogradova (1984) is the author of a children's book ("Baby Long Nose from the Long Nose Village") and two collections of short stories ("exhalations" and "Bear Hill"). River is her first novel and was shortlisted for the 2020 Latvian Literature Award, and received a 2021 EU Prize for Literature.

Kaija Straumanis< is an award-winning translator from the Latvian. She has an MA in Literary Translation Studies from the University of Rochester in New York, and is the Editorial Director of Open Letter Books. Her translations include works by such authors as Inga Abele, Janis Joņevs, Laura Vinogradova, Gundega Rep?e, among others. She received a 2020 NEA Literature Translation Fellowship for her work on Forest Daughters edited by Sanita Reinsone.