Tess Uriza Holthe is a Filipino-American writer who was born and raised in the Bernal Heights neighborhood of San Francisco and is best known for her nationally bestselling novel When the Elephants Dance.
[1] Holthe graduated from Golden Gate University in 1996 with a degree in accounting.
[2][3] While working full-time as an accountant, she began writing her first novel When the Elephants Dance during lunch breaks, evenings, and weekends.
[2][3] When the Elephants Dance is inspired in part by her father's experiences growing up in the Philippines during World War II.
[2][3][4]