Michelle Cook is the pseudonym of a book editor/author who was thrilled to collaborate with Bloomsbury Children's Books to develop this unique text.
Diane and Leo Dillon, a husband-and-wife team, have collaborated on more than fifty picture and chapter books. They are known for their wide range of media and techniques and their mission to include people of many cultures in their work. They are the only artists to have received the Caldecott two years in succession.
Diane and Leo Dillon, a husband-and-wife team, have collaborated on more than fifty picture and chapter books. They are known for their wide range of media and techniques and their mission to include people of many cultures in their work. They are the only artists to have received the Caldecott two years in succession.
ERIC VELASQUEZ is the author and illustrator of Grandma's Records and Grandma's Gift, a Pura Belpré Award winner. He is also the illustrator of The Price of Freedom; I, Matthew Henson, which received four starred reviews; Jesse Owens: Fastest Man Alive, which received two starred reviews; and The Piano Man, for which he won the Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe New Talent Award. He is a graduate of the School of Visual Arts and lives in New York. www.ericvelasquez.com
R. Gregory Christie is a Brooklyn-based multi award-winning children's book illustrator who visits schools all over the country. www.gas-art.com
James Ransome is the illustrator of more than forty books and the winner of numerous awards. His work is part of both public and private children's book art collections. He teaches at Syracuse University and lives in Rhinebeck, NY, with his wife, writer Lesa Cline Ransome, and their children.
Bryan Collier is the Caldecott Honor and Coretta Scott King Award winner of numerous children's books, including Rosa and Martin's Big Words: The Life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. When he's not painting, he spends his time visiting schools and encouraging young artists and readers. Bryan lives in New York with his wife and daughter. www.bryancollier.com
Shadra Strickland, an Atlanta native, studied illustration and design at Syracuse University and earned her M.F.A. at New York's School of Visual Arts. Her first book, Bird, received the Coretta Scott King John Steptoe Award and was a Kirkus Reviews Best Children's Book. She currently resides in Brooklyn, New York.
FRANK MORRISON is a renowned fine artist whose work was featured in Our Children Can Soar. He has lent his talents to many picture books, including Alex Rodriguez's Out of the Ballpark, Queen Latifah's Queen of the Scene, and Brenda Roberts' Jazzy Miz Mozetta, for which he won the Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe Award for New Talent. He lives in Georgia.
Pat Cummings was raised as an Army "brat" in Germany, Okinawa, and Kansas (!), using art as an entree whenever she moved from school to school. Having created everything from board books to teen novels, nonfiction to children's television, she now teaches a children's book course at Parson's School of Design and at her alma mater, Pratt Institute.
Cozbi A. Cabrera's beautiful, handcrafted cloth dolls have garnered the attention of collectors around the world. She attended Parsons School of Design and lives in Brooklyn, New York. Cozbi has illustrated Beauty, Her Basket; Thanks a Million; Most Loved In All the World and Stichin' and Pullin': A Gee's Bend Quilt.
Charlotte Riley-Webb has won numerous awards as a fine artist including a 2006 Pollock-Krasner Foundation award. Charlotte has also illustrated several children's books, including Rent Party Jazz, Sweet Potato Pie, The Entrance Place of Wonders, and the upcoming I Like Brown. She lives in Georgia. www.charlotterileywebb.com
AG Ford grew up in Dallas, Texas. At a young age he discovered his artistic ability, which later led him to the Columbus College of Art and Design. Ford's first picture book, Barack by Jonah Winter, reached the New York Times bestseller list. www.agfordillustration.com
E. B. Lewis is the acclaimed illustrator of more than fifty books for children, including the Caldecott Honor book Coming On Home Soon and several Coretta Scott King Award winners, such as Talkin' About Bessie: The Story of Aviator Elizabeth Coleman and Bat Boy and His Violin. He lives in Folsom, New Jersey.
www.eblewis.com
Marian Wright Edelman is a lifelong advocate for disadvantaged Americans and is the founder and president of the Children's Defense Fund (CDF). Under her leadership, CDF has become the nation's strongest voice for children and families.
