Tom Peek lived his early life on the Upper Mississippi on a backwaters island of Minnesota river folk, beaver, and ancient burial mounds. After hitchhiking by boat through the South Seas, he settled on Hawaiʻi Island more than three decades ago. There, he's been a mountain and astronomy guide on Mauna Kea and an eruption ranger, firefighter, and exhibit writer on Kilauea, working closely with Hawaiian elders and cultural practitioners on both volcanoes. A nationally award-winning author and acclaimed writing teacher, he lives with his wife, artist Catherine Robbins, in a rainforest cottage near Kilauea's erupting summit.