Sarah Orne Jewett (1849-1909), novelist and short-story writer, was born and raised in South Berwick, Maine. The daughter of a country doctor, she received a lady's education but maintained that her real learning came from her father, who fostered her writing talents and let her accompany him on his rounds. At age 19, she had her first short story published in the Atlantic Monthly. Her vignettes of the gently perishing glory of the Maine countryside and ports won her a place among the most successful of the local-color writers.

Kate Reading is an award-winning narrator and actor who is a company member at Woolly Mammoth Theatre and has appeared on many other stages. She is married to actor-narrator Michael Kramer (Nick Bernard), and they live with their two children in the Washington, D.C. area.