Walter Wangerin, Jr. is the award-winning author of thirty-five books, including the best-selling The Book of God, the National Book Award-winning The Book of the Dun Cow, and, most recently, Letters from the Land of Cancer. Wangerin holds the Jochum Chair at Valparaiso University in Valparaiso, Indiana, where he teaches literature and creative writing, and is writer-in-residence.