Michael Bird is the author of many books on folk art, religion and culture, including Canadian Country Furniture, 1675-1950, published by Boston Mills Press. He visited Cape Breton's many houses of worship with co-author Susan Hyde during his summer trips to the Maritimes in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Susan Hyde and Michael Bird are married and live in Waterloo, Ontario. He is a professor in the departments of Religious Studies and Fine Arts at Renison College, University of Waterloo. Both maintain a strong interest in matters artistic, musical and historical, and are easily enticed to grab notebook and camera and trek to out-of-the-way churches on short notice.