The writer, Alexander McCall Smith was born to Scottish parents in Rhodesia, now Zimbabwe, in 1948. He grew up there, and then moved to Scotland to study law at the University of Edinburgh. Returning to Africa, he taught law at the University of Botswana for a number of years. During this time, he noticed the warmth and kindness of the people of Botswana. He now lives in Scotland with his wife, Elizabeth, and two daughters, Lucy and Emily. Although he travels widely as a writer, his favourite activities include spending time at home with his family, cooking for family and friends and playing the bassoon in the Really Terrible Orchestra.
McCall Smith has written many books, including children's stories, but is best-known for his books about a lady detective in Botswana. Mma Ramotswe, a lady "of traditional build", likes drinking bush tea and helping people. So, she opens the "Number One Ladies' Detective Agency", and does just that. There have been several books about her, and each one shows the gentle, funny, and mostly good side of human nature; the side that the writer sees in the people of Botswana.

Aravind Adiga was born in southeastern India, the son of a doctor, and grew up in Mangalore and Australia. He studied English Literature at Columbia University in New York and Magdalen College, Oxford. After that Adiga became a journalist with the Financial Times. He also worked for Time magazine in India and in other parts of Asia. After deciding to stay in Mumbai, he wrote a book called The White Tiger, which won an important literary award, the Booker prize, in 2008.

The book follows the story of its main character, Balram Halwai, who starts life as a servant in modern India, and finally becomes a successful businessman. As he tells his story, Balram shows the reader a part of India that we don't usually see, and the reality of life for the Indian poor. The book paints a picture that is both shocking and powerful. It shows us how difficult it is for many poor people to find a better life in modern India.

How did Adiga, who is from a comfortable middle-class family, create such a realistic story about the poor? Says that as a journalist he travelled widely, and spent a lot of time talking with poor people at railway stations. He kept a diary of those conversations, and used his notes to build the character of Balram.