Shira Boss lives on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City, three blocks from Central Park. Up In The Leaves is her second book. She earned undergraduate and graduate degrees from Columbia University, including a master’s in journalism. When her Japanese maple tree needed pruning, several people suggested she call arborist Bob Redman. He said it was the smallest tree he has ever worked on (about four feet high, in a pot). Now they have two sons, two whippets – and many more trees.