Beth Ann Mathews is a marine biologist and mother, and the author of Deep Waters: A Memoir of Loss, Alaska Adventure, and Love Rekindled. She has studied whales in Hawaii, Alaska, Canada, and the Northwest Atlantic, and taught marine mammal biology at the University of Alaska Southeast, where she led field research on seals, sea lions, and porpoises. She lives with her husband on an island near Seattle, where she enjoys hiking, writing, sailing, and wildlife photography.