Dr. Shannon Avery grew up in New Orleans, where her grandmother's cook regaled her with tales of a noble, mystical, adventurous people only referred to as “They.” Dr. Avery's interest in folklore and mythology grew when she learned to read, and she began to notice a stunning similarity between the tales of Them and depictions in literature of elves and fairy folk. Dr. Avery's interest led her to study comparative literature at Tulane University and Trinity College in Dublin, Ireland. In 2002, she received her doctorate in cultural anthropology and linguistics from the University of Virginia. Since then, she has been travelling the world in search of stories and poems about the mythical creatures she has come to know as the Sidhe.