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Princeton Children's Book Festival Saturday, September 11, 2010 11:00 a.m.-4:00p.m. Albert E. Hinds Memorial Plaza at the Princeton Public Library |
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Tony Abbott has written more than eighty books for young readers aged 6 to 14, including The Haunting of Derek Stone, the long-running series, The Secrets of Droon, and the novels, Kringle, Firegirl (2006 Golden Kite Award for Fiction), and The Postcard (2009 Edgar Award for Best Juvenile Mystery). His forthcoming novel, Lunch-Box Dream, will appear in Spring 2011, as well as a new series for younger readers, Goofballs. Tony is a frequent conference speaker and visitor to schools, and presents workshops to creative writers of all ages. He is author of the literary blog: www.FridayBookReport.com. Tony resides in Connecticut. |
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Selina Alko was born in Vancouver, British Columbia in Canada. Although Selina has lived in New York since 1991, she still believes that she brings a Canadian perspective to her writing and illustrating. It is important to Selina that her books help children to be more open-minded. She feels strongly that people are fundamentally the same at heart, despite labels of religion, race and class. When she was pregnant for the second time, Selina wrote and illustrated I’m Your Peanut Butter Big Brother (Knopf) about a child who wonders what his sibling-on-the-way will look like. Selina portrays multiculturalism in her work by creating pictures with people of all different backgrounds and cultures. Alko is also inspired by living in New York City with its constant buzzing energy and the interaction of people from many different backgrounds and walks of life. Selina lives in Brooklyn, New York with her husband illustrator Sean Qualls, and their children, Isaiah and Ginger. |
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Jennifer Allison’s Gilda Joyce: Psychic Investigator mystery series introduces a 13-year-old girl whose grief over the death of her father drives her to become a ghost-hunter and sleuth. The series has been praised for the “earnest personality” and “dry wit” of its protagonist, along with the “surprisingly spooky” scenes that leave some young readers sleeping with the lights on. The Gilda Joyce series has been featured in School Library Journal’s “Best Books of the Year” and Booklist Magazine’s “Top Ten Mysteries” list, along with numerous starred reviews and an Edgar Award nomination from Mystery Writers of America. Jennifer Allison is a former news reporter, editor, and high school English teacher. She lives in Kensington, MD with her husband and their three children. Her short story “The Perfects” appears in the International Thriller Writers Association fiction anthology FEAR (September, 2010). |
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Artie Bennett is the executive copy editor for a children’s book publisher and he writes a little on the side (but not the backside!). He wrote a couple things when he was a much younger man, but The Butt Book is his first mature work. He and his wife, Leah, live deep in the bowels of Brooklyn. He is pleased to share the visionary promise of The Butt Book with a wider audience. Make way for the butt! Tall butts, small butts, flat butts, fat butts. Butts on mummies and butts on mommies. Butts on giraffes and elephants and dogs and . . . FISH? Yes, even fish butts are celebrated in this riotous tribute to backsides, rumps, tushies, keisters, heinies, and derrieres, in all their resplendent glory. Bottoms up! |
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Louise Bonnett-Rampersaud was born in England and moved to the United States when she was six. She has lived in Florida, Pennsylvania and now finds home in the Maryland suburbs just outside of Washington DC. She graduated from State College Area High School in State College, Pennsylvania (home of the Nittany Lion), and completed a journalism degree from The University of Maryland in an appropriate amount of time (regardless of what others may say). During her ‘year out’ from university, she interned at Lloyd’s of London and pulled a pint or two at a charming pub in the City of London. Louise is the author of such picture book titles as Polly Hopper’s Pouch (Dutton, 2001), How Do You Sleep? (Marshall Cavendish, 2005), Bubble & Squeak (Marshall Cavendish, 2006) and Never Ask A Bear (HarperCollins, 2009). She is currently at work on her first chapter book and hopes to have great news about its acquisition by the festival! Louise currently resides in Sandy Spring, MD, with her family (that, much to the dismay of her children, remains petless). |
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Kirsten Bramsen is a singer, actor, and gardener who was raised in Boulder, Colorado and made her way east to Brooklyn by way of Chicago. As a person who has always been enthralled with the childhood experience, she took an episode from her youth and wove it into a tale named The Yellow Tutu. This debut children’s book has been featured on NY1 News, awarded the 2009 Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Gold Seal Award, and placed on the 2010 Children’s Book Council Children’s Choice List. Kirsten lives with her park ranger husband, whimsical daughter, quirky cat, and lethargic turtle. |
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Irene Breznak wrote stories as soon as she could print; however, she made them up long before that. Her parents called them fibs; she preferred “fiction writing in the making”. Irene's debut picutre book, Sneezy Louise (Random House, 2009), made the 2010 Children's Choices Booklist, a joint project of the International Reading Association and the Children's Book Council. Sneezy Louise was also nominated for the 2009 Cybils and featured in the NYC stage production of Books Cook! which was created, composed and directed by Liz Swados. |
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Pat Brisson is the author of twenty books for children. Her most recent books are, Sometimes We Were Brave, a picture book about a young boy whose mother is in the Navy and how he manages when she has to go to sea for an extended period, and The Best and Hardest Thing, a novel in verse for Young Adults about a 15-year-old who gets pregnant and finds herself with very difficult decisions to make. Other titles include picture books Benny’s Pennies; Melissa Parkington’s Beautiful, Beautiful Hair; The Summer My Father Was Ten and the easy-to-read chapter book, Little Sister, Big Sister. She has worked as a 4th grade teacher and a librarian and does frequent author visits to schools. She and her husband have four grown sons. They live in Phillipsburg, NJ. |
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Laurie Calkhoven started thinking about the siege of Boston while she was researching a biography of George Washington. She wondered what like was life for the people trapped in Boston with the Redcoats while the Patriot army gathered outside. It wasn’t long before a character named Daniel starred whispering in her ear, telling her about his secret work for General Washington. In Daniel at the Seige of Boston, 1776, twelve-year-old Daniel Prescott lets the British officers who have taken over the Prescott's Blue Whale tavern believe he is loyal to King George. Secretly he's on the side of the Patriots. Calkhoven is at work on more Boys of Wartime stories as well as novels for American Girl’s new series, Innerstar University. The first, Fork in the Trail, was just published. |
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Alyssa Satin Capucilli is the award winning author of over fifty books including Biscuit, the popular best-seller used to launch the My First I Can Read Series from HarperCollins. With over fifty titles in the series as well as over fifteen million books in print, Biscuit has been deemed a modern classic and has been translated into numerous languages worldwide. Ms. Capucilli began her professional career as a dancer. Although her storytelling initially became realized in the roles she embodied as a dancer, she feels most fortunate that she was able to segue into the world of creating characters and literature for young readers. The irrepressible Katy Duck, bridges the love of writing and dance. Ms. Capucilli is the recipient of numerous awards including the Washington Irving Award, the Garden State Award, the Bank Street College Best Book Award and the Oppenheim Portfolio Gold Award, and the American Library Association Award. She is a frequent lecturer at the Teachers College Reading and Writing Project and currently teaches at Sarah Lawrence College. She resides in New York state with her family and pets. |
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Margery Cuyler has been involved with children’s books as an author, editor, or publisher for more than forty years. She was Vice President and Editor-in-Chief of Holiday House for twenty-one years before assuming executive positions at Henry Holt and Company, Golden Books Family Entertainment, Winslow Press, and, for the past eight years, Marshall Cavendish, where she is Publisher of Children’s Books. She has written 45 books, including the That’s Good! That’s Bad! books, the Jessica Worries books, The Biggest, Best Snowman, Hooray for Reading Day, Skeleton Hiccups, The Little Dump Truck, Bullies Never Win, Princess Bess Gets Dressed, The Battlefield Ghost, Weird Wolf, and, most recently, I Repeat, Don’t Cheat! and Guinea Pigs Add Up. She worked closely with Sean Covey on The 7 Habits of Happy Kids. Her books have received innumerable awards, including the Japanese Best Picture Book of the Year award for Skeleton Hiccups. The mother of two grown sons, she lives in Princeton, N.J. with her husband, Jan. |
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Diane deGroat has illustrated over 120 books for various authors including Eve Bunting, Johanna Hurwitz, and Lois Lowry. Diane is also the author and illustrator of the Annie Pitts series, as well as the Gilbert and Friends books, which include Roses are Pink, Your Feet Really Stink, a New York Times Best Seller. Twelve additional books are in this series, which has won three state children’s choice awards. In 2009, a spin-off series of I Can Read books appeared, offering beginner readers their own stories to read about Gilbert the opossum and his friends. Her latest book, Dogs Don’t Brush Their Teeth! is a collaboration with Shelley Rotner. Instead of her usual watercolor style, Diane did the artwork totally on the computer, combining digital art with Shelley’s photographs. It was named one of Time Magazine's Top Ten Children's Books for 2009 and has received the Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Award. |
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Eve Feldman is a published author of children's books and young adult books. Some of her published credits include Giant Surprise, Seymour, the Formerly Fearful, Dog Crazy. Her new book for children is titled Billy and Milly, Short and Silly! Eve lives in Rockville Centre, NY. |
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Alison Formento’s first picture book This Tree Counts! (Whitman 2010), proves that trees are for more than just climbing. From Booklist: Teachers will welcome this “going green” tale, which ends with the junior tree huggers planting more trees. Kirkus review: With a cleverly worded title, Formento combines a counting book with the environmental message that every tree matters. Alison’s next book, This Tree, 1, 2, 3 will be released in 2011. She grew up in Arkansas and now resides in New Jersey and besides writing everyday and enjoying life with her husband and kids, Alison dreams of someday building a spectacular tree house. She donates a portion of her book sales to AmericanForests.org to help plant more trees. |
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Diane Goode is the illustrator of dozens of beloved and critically acclaimed picture books including several written by Cynthia Rylant, Alligator Boy; When I Was Young in the Mountains, a Caldecott Honor Book; and most recently, Baby Face: A Book of Love for Baby. She is also the illustrator of President Pennybaker and My Mom is Trying to Ruin My Life both by Kate Feiffer and Louise the Big Cheese: Divine Diva and Louise the Big Cheese and the La Di Da Shoes both by Elise Primavera. She lives and works in Watchung, NJ with her husband, David, and their two dogs, Jack and Daisy. |
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Chris Grabenstein did improvisational comedy in New York City with Bruce Willis before James Patterson hired him to write advertising copy. His first book for middle grades readers, The Crossroads, won both the 2008 Agatha and Anthony Awards as Best Children’s/YA novel appeared on several “Best” lists, and has been optioned to become a movie. The second book in the series, The Hanging Hill, also won the Agatha Award. The third Haunted Mystery, The Smoky Corridor, all about a zombie who lives in the basement of a middle school, was published by Random House in August. He is currently working on The Black Heart Crypt, a fourth Haunted Mystery for Random House and a new middle grades caper series Riley Mack And The Other Known Troublemakers for Harper Collins. Chris’s dog Fred has even better credits: Fred starred on Broadway in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. |
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Lisa Graff is the author of several middle-grade novels, including The Thing About Georgie and Umbrella Summer, both from HarperCollins. Her first chapter book, Sophie Simon Solves Them All, illustrated by Jason Beene, will be published in September 2010. Lisa's books have been named to a dozen state reading lists, and when she's not working on new books or leading writing workshops, she can be found jetting across the country to talk to children and adults about books and writing. A former associate editor at Farrar, Straus & Giroux Books for Young Readers, she is also a graduate of the New School's MFA program in Writing for Children. |
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Lee Haper is a children's book author/illustrator living with his family in Doylestown, PA. Lee is the illustrator of Woolbur by Leslie Helakoksi, Turkey in Trouble by Wendy Silvano and Snow! Snow! Snow! which he both wrote and illustrated. Lee recently completed the illustrations for a book entitled Looking For the Easy Life by Walter Dean Myers (Harper Collins 2011). Several new projects are in the works including: The Emperor's Cool Clothes (Marshall Cavendish 2011) and Turkey Claus by Wendi Silvano (Marshall Cavendish 2012). Besides writing and illustrating Lee loves to visit schools. |
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Deborah was born in Allentown, PA. She lived in the same house her whole childhood. Deborah was a good student, and loved school, although she was not the perfect child. She was inspired by the author E.L Konigsburg and by several of her teachers in high school. Deborah went on to Brown University where she majored in Religious Studies. After graduating she found herself working for Scholastic News Explorer where she discovered she loved writing for children. Years later Deborah left Scholastic to freelance and has written many non-fiction, picture books and fiction books for children of all ages. Her latest book Charles and Emma is the winner of the first-ever YALSA Excellence in Nonfiction Award. As if that wasn't enough, it also received a Michael L. Printz Honor Award and has been named as a finalist for the L.A. Times Book Prize, in the Young Adult Literature category! Deborah resides in New York. |
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Tad Hills' latest book How Rocket Learned to Read is about a sweet dog named Rocket and a little yellow bird who introduces him to reading and the wonderful world of books. Tad is also author and illustrator of the award-winning and New York Times bestselling picture books, Duck & Goose and Duck, Duck, Goose. He has also created four board books featuring the same characters, What's Up, Duck?, an ALA Notable Book, Duck and Goose: 1, 2, 3 , Duck & Goose: How are You Feeling?, and Duck and Goose Find a Pumpkin. He is also the illustrator of Waking Up Wendell, My Fuzzy Friends, and Knock, Knock, Who’s There? Hills lives in Brooklyn with his wife, their two children and their dog named Rocket, who has not (yet) learned how to read. |
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Amy Ignatow is an author and illustrator. After graduating from Moore College of Art and Design in 2002 she became a freelance illustrator and art instructor, as well as a reporter, a back-up singer, and an airbrush face and body painter working under the pseudonym "Ooga". She once won first prize in an impromptu dance contest for her interpretation of Bette Midler's "Wind Beneath My Wings". Amy lives in Philadelphia with her husband Mark and their cat Tilda, who is mostly terrible. The Popularity Papers is her first book.
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Daniel has been drawing since kindergarten, where he could mainly be found drawing skulls and hooks, to the irritation of some adults. He studied at Art Center College of Design near Montreux, Switzerland and later in Pasadena, California, where he graduated with a BFA in Graphic Design in 1998. Afterwards he worked as an Art Director for several agencies designing corporate designs and websites for clients large and small. Now he works as a freelance illustrator in Frankfurt, where he lives with his wife Lenore and two fancy Sacred Birman cats.In 2010, he illustrated his first trade picture book, Is Your Buffalo Ready For Kindergarten?, which will be followed in 2011 by a sequel. |
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Here’s the thing about Katy Kelly: If you look at Lucy Rose’s life and then look at Katy’s, you’ll see that in some ways they’re very similar. She grew up on Capitol Hill and had a dog named Gumbo. Her parents are very much like Madam and Pop and she’s an original thinker, at least according to her dad. She is the author of the Lucy Rose and Melon Heads series.Katy and her family still reside not far from Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. |
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Can a New York City girl and her dog survive alone on the Appalachian Trail? Debut novelist Jane Kelley delves into this question and pens a laugh-out-loud survival tale in Nature Girl (Random House Books for Young Readers). As Sid Fleischman says, “Jane Kelley uses the light touch of humor to let in the sunlight. Bravo!” Booklist calls it, “Funny, fresh, and charming.”Jane draws her inspiration for writing from her grandmother who was also a novelist and her teenaged daughter--but don’t tell her that! Jane lives in Brooklyn, NY with her husband and daughter. She has enjoyed many summers in Vermont and hopes to hike more of the Trail one day if she could only persuade her cat to come along. |
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Daniel Kirk is the acclaimed author and illustrator of over thirty books for children, including the “Library Mouse” picture book series and the “Elf Realm” young-adult novel series. His new books in Fall, 2010 are “A World to Explore” from Abrams, “The High Road” from Amulet, and “Honk Honk Beep Beep” from Hyperion. Kirk’s work also includes poetry and song. Daniel resides in New Jersey with his family. |
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Bob Krech didn’t catch onto reading and writing until he bought his first comic book in second grade. He immediately began creating his own comics, characters, and stories and hasn't stopped since. His first novel for young adults, Rebound, was selected by ALA as one of the Best Books for Young Adults in 2007. His new novel, Love Puppies and Corner Kicks is described by the publisher as "Lauren Myracle meets Matt Christopher." Bob is also the author of twenty books published by Scholastic Professional Books on the subject of teaching for parents and teachers. He teaches in the West Windsor-Plainsboro Schools and lives with his wife and two children in Lawrenceville, NJ. |
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Susan Kuklin is a writer and photographer of over thirty-five nonfiction books for children and young adults. These award-winning books cover a broad range of topics, including cultural identity, the performing arts, and human rights. Among her photo essays for young children are Families, How My Family Lives in America, and All Aboard: A True Train Story. For Beautiful Ballerina, written by Marilyn Nelson, Susan photographed students from the Dance Theatre of Harlem. No Choirboy: Murder, Violence, and Teenagers on Death Row is her latest book for young adults. Susan’s photographs have appeared in leading newspapers and magazines, including The New York Times, Time, and Newsweek. Her photography will also be featured in a soon-to-be released feature film, Project Nim, by Academy Award winning filmmaker, James Marsh. |
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William Lach is an avid gardener, writer, and editor who has worked with a number of botanical gardens on book and stationery projects. He lives in Brooklyn, New York. About My Friends, the FlowersOne little bee loves to visit his friends—who just happen to be flowers! He visits with Marigold, who scares all the bugs; Sunflower, who has a big happy face; Daffodil, who nods his head; and even some Impatiens, who hang around the shady parts of town. From fiery snapdragons and gorgeous camellias, to prickly pears and the bells of forsythias, the bee introduces young readers to the many flowers that add color and character to our world.
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Brian Lies is a Princeton native and the award-winning author/illustrator of more than twenty books, including his NY Times Bestsellers Bats at the Beach and Bats at the Library. His latest turn at bat, Bats at the Ballgame, was recently named a Junior Library Guild Selection, and transports fans to an upside-down and right-side up version of America's favorite pastime. Brian's books have been featured on "The Martha Stewart Show," read aloud by Daniel Pinkwater and Scott Simon on NPR's "Weekend Edition," and translated into seven languages. They have received numerous awards, including the 2009 ABA IndieChoice Award (formerly ABBY Book Sense Book of the Year). Bats at the Library was named the "#3 Picture Book of the Year" by Time/CNN in 2008. Born in the land of the Phillies, Mets and Yankees, and earning a .000 batting average in Little League (but a surprisingly high on-base percentage), Brian now lives in the heart of Red Sox Nation with his wife and daughter, and has learned to appreciate the game. |
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London Ladd, a resident of Syracuse, New York started drawing in his late teens and has developed a painting style that is reminiscent of traditional artist. Some of London's influences are great artists such as N.C. Wyeth, John Singer Sargeant, Dean Cornwell, Frank Duveneck and Greg Manchess. His art retains an intensity and emotion that is all his own. With a diversified subject matter, London's painterly style seeps through each piece. Most of his work is created with a mixture of acrylic and oil paint. He carries a sketchbook and paints with him everywhere he goes constantly perfecting his craft. |
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In addition to being an author of young adult books, Pamela Lowell is also a licensed clinical social worker with over twenty years of experience counseling teens and their families. She is a consultant at Adoption Rhode Island. Her newest novel, Spotting for Nellie (Marshall Cavendish) was released in April of 2010, about two gymnast sisters who get into a car accident leaving one with a brain injury. She is a nationally recognized speaker in the fields of adoption, adolescents and trauma. Returnable Girl is about a teen’s journey from foster care to adoption amidst the perils of middle school (Marshall Cavendish, 2006) and has won numerous awards including a Popular Paperback from the American Library Association, 2010. She welcomes the opportunity to visit schools and talk about writing, parenting, teens and brain development. |
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Carolyn MacCullough was born and raised in Connecticut, and found her way to Scotland, Iceland, and Sicily, before settling down in New York where she writes and teaches creative writing for NYU, the New School, and Gotham Writers. Once a Witch is her fourth novel for young adults and was a Junior Library Guild selection as well as an NYPL Stuff for the Teen Age selection. For an excerpt, quizzes, a book trailer and much more please visit www.onceawitch.com. |
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Maryann Macdonald is the author of 24 children’s books, including Little Piano Girl, the childhood biography of Mary Lou Williams (“…a touching memorial to a jazz great who is not yet a household name.” Publisher’s Weekly). Maryann has taught Writing for Children at Marymount Manhattan College and worked as an editor for various publishers, including The Princeton Review. She will be a guest lecturer in the MFA program at the New School this autumn, and regularly speaks about writing in schools, libraries and hospitals. |
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Fran Manushkin is the author of over sixty picture books, including the popular "Katie Woo" easy-to-read series about a Chinese-American girl. There are 16 Katie Woo stories published and 8 more are on the way. She's also the author of The Tushy Book; Latkes and Applesauce: A Hanukkah Story; Miriam's Cup: A Passover Story; How Mama Brought the Spring; The Shivers in the Fridge; and Baby, Come Out!, which has been translated into 8 languages.Ms. Manushkin has taught children's book writing in Russia, Albania, Hungary, and Albania, and, for six years, was the Chair of PEN American Center's Children's and Young Adult Writers Committee. She lives in New York City with her two unhelpful cats, Cookie and Goldy. |
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Leslie Margolis is the author of more than fifty books for young readers, including Boys Are Dogs, which was recently nominated for both the Nevada Young Reader's Award and the Sequoyah Book Award, Girl's Acting Catty, and Fix -- a YALSA quick pick.She cannot wait for the October 2010 release of Girl's Best Friend, the first in her brand new series The Maggie Brooklyn Mysteries. Leslie lives with her family in Park Slope, a Brooklyn neighborhood filled filled with dogs and mysteries and even some mysterious dogs. |
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Wendy Mass is the author of ten novels for young people, which have been translated into 12 languages and nominated for 40 state book awards. Her first, A Mango-Shaped Space, was awarded the Schneider Family Book Award. It was followed by Leap Day, the Twice Upon a Time fairy tale series, Every Soul a Star, 11 Birthdays, Heaven Looks a Lot Like the Mall, Finally, Jeremy Fink and the Meaning of Life, and The Candymakers. |
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Charles Micucci Charles Micucci is the Author-Illustrator of The Life and Times of Corn, published by Houghton Mifflin. To research corn he planted mini-popcorn in a bucket, painted mountain corn in a barrel, and hybrid sweet corn along a hedge row. Other books in the series include: The Life and Times of the Apple, The Life and Times of the Honeybee, The Life and Times of the Peanut, and The Life and Times of the Ant. Charles Micucci was born in North Carolina and attended eleven different schools while growing up. He graduated from Northern Illinois University where he walked past cornfields on his way to class. He has illustrated seventeen books for children and currently lives in New Jersey. |
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Diane Muldrow Diane Muldrow is an editorial director at Golden Books/Random House, and the editor of the famous Little Golden Books. She has worked in publishing for over twenty years, editing mass market, licensed, and trade picture books for young children. Diane is also a prolific author of books for kids of all ages, including the middle-grade series Dish (Grosset & Dunlap). Here latest title is the picture book We Planted a Tree. |
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Roxie is the acclaimed author/illustrator of more than 30 books for children including Mazescapes; Amazement Park; The Inside-Outside Books of New York City [New York Times Best Illustrated Award], Dinosaurs, Go, Go, Go! Roxie has been an artist from the age of six, when she won first prize in a county-wide contest for a painting of a bowl of fruit. She has supported herself all her life on her art, at one point freelancing in Washington DC as a television courtroom artist. Fourteen of her paintings have been published as covers of The New Yorker magazine. Her lastest book is Eco Mazes. Roxie resides in Manhattan. |
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Originally from Chicago, Henry H. Neff now lives in Brooklyn where he writes and illustrates children's books. The Tapestry series and its first two volumes, The Hound of Rowan and The Second Siege are are in stores while the third book, The Fiend and the Forge will arrive in November 2010. In his spare times Henry enjoys visiting young readers, reading and cheering on his beloved Chicago Bears. |
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Here's my short story...in black and white. I was born, played, crayoned, went to school, and grew up in Edison, NJ. Yes, that's the town named after Thomas You-Know-Who, and where he invented the light bulb at his laboratory in Menlo Park. My sister, brother, and I played all kinds of imaginary games, including 'horse,' and 'dog,' and 'cat.' (That's where I got my idea for The Perfect Pet. Margie has authored many books. Her talents take her from picture books to mid-grade novels. Her latest book is the very funny Lousy, Rotten, Stinkin' Grapes.Margie lives in New Jersey with her family. |
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Matt is the author of three young adult books; Ball Don't Lie, Mexican White Boy and We Were Here. All three were recogonized by ALA-YALSA with literary awards. His fourth novel; I Will Save You will be released in October of 2010 and in January 2011 Matt's first picture book; Joe Louis: A Nation's Hope will be released. Matt currently teaches creative writing at NYU and visits high schools and colleges all around the country. Matt lives in Brooklyn, NY. |
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Erica S. Perl is the award-winning author of several picture books, including Chicken Bedtime Is Really Early and Chicken Butt! Her latest book, Dotty, a celebration of the enduring power of imagination and friendship, is “a charmer” (Kirkus Reviews). Erica is also the author of Vintage Veronica, a new young adult novel. Publishers Weekly calls Vintage Veronica "wonderfully fun" and School Library Journal cheers Veronica as “a much needed character in young adult fiction.” Erica has presented her work at national teachers’ conferences and has led workshops at literacy organizations, schools and libraries across the United States and in Europe. In addition to writing books, Erica works at First Book, the groundbreaking non-profit organization that has provided over 70 million brand new books to children in need: www.firstbook.org. Erica resides with her family in Washington, D.C. |
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Olugbemisola Rhuday-Perkovich was the ‘new kid’ at school many times over, in more than one country, and currently lives with her family in Brooklyn, NY, where she loves walking and working on crafts in many forms. Her middle grade debut novel, 8TH GRADE SUPERZERO, received a starred review from Publisher's Weekly and was named one of Amazon's Best Books of the Month. She holds a Master's in Education, and a Professional Development Certificate from the Teachers College Reading and Writing Project at Columbia University, and has a great time incorporating all of her different ways of working and playing into author visits and workshops. She is a member of SCBWI, a PEN Associate Member, and a former Echoing Green Foundation Fellow. |
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Sean Qualls is the illustrator of a number of celebrated books for children, including Before John Was a Jazz Giant by Carole Boston Weatherford (Henry Holt), for which he received a Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor, and Dizzy by Jonah Winter (Scholastic), an ALA Notable Book, a Kirkus Best Book, and a School Library Journal Best Book of the Year. He has also illustrated Little Cloud and Lady Wind by Toni Morrison and her son Slade and Giant Steps to Change The World by Spike and Tonya Lee, which will be published in January 2011. Sean draws inspiration from an array of influences such as movies, television, childhood memories, aging and decaying surfaces, architecture, old buildings, nature, folk art, fairy tales, americana, black memorabilia, outsider art, cave paintings, collectibles, african art, golden books, vintage advertisements, psychology, mythology, speculative fiction, music, and literature. Having grown up in Bordentown, NJ, Sean now lives with his wife, illustrator Selina Alko, and their two children in Brooklyn, NY. |
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Mara Rockliff doesn’t own a cell phone, eat fast food, or watch TV at home, but she still has a lot of fun. Her first nonfiction book, Get Real: What Kind of World Are You Buying? has teens and pre-teens gasping, gagging, and laughing as they discover the real story behind everything from cheeseburgers to underwear. Mara’s recent fiction titles include the picture book The Busiest Street in Town and an early chapter book series, The Milo & Jazz Mysteries, written under the pen name Lewis B. Montgomery. She lives in eastern Pennsylvania with her human family and a spoodle named Daisy. |
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Shelly Rotner Shelley Rotner is an award-winning author and photo-illustrator of over thirty children’s books. Her most recent books include: Dogs Don’t Brush Their Teeth, Shades of People, What’s the Buzz on Bees? and Every Season. Ms Rotner is also a noted free-lance photojournalist, whose work has appeared in Time Magazine, National Geographic’s World Magazine, Conde Nast Traveler, Outside Magazine, and Food and Wine Magazine.She has traveled extensively for UNICEF documenting programs about children, women health and education.Currently, Ms Rotner is working on a collection of large hand-painted photographs that capture beautiful and sacred places she has discovered in her travels. She lives in Massachusetts. |
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R.L. Stine began his writing career when he was nine years old, and today he has achieved the position of the bestselling children’ s author in history. In the early 1990s, Stine was catapulted to fame when he wrote the unprecedented, bestselling Goosebumps® series, which sold more than 250 million copies and became a worldwide multimedia phenomenon. His other major series, Fear Street, has over 80 million copies sold. |
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Nancy Tafuri is probably best known as the creator of Have You Seen My Duckling?, a 1985 Caldecott Honor Book described by Parent’s Choice as “beautifully precise yet emotionally affecting.” Trained as a graphic designer, Tafuri has authored more than 45 books over 27 years for the very young. When Tafuri first attempted picture book illustration in the late 1970’s picture books were aimed at five-, six-, and seven-year-olds. Tafuri’s images were considered “too graphic” for children that age. “The pictures are too big,” she was told over and over about the large, colorful shapes she drew. Finally, Tafuri’s talent was recognized and tapped at Greenwillow Books, Harper Collins Publishers. Since then she has had the opportunity to work with Scholastic Press, Scholastic Inc., Simon & Schuster Books For Young Readers, Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing Division and most recently Little, Brown Books For Young Readers, Little, Brown and Company. Nancy resides in Connecticut. |
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Crystal Velasquez was born and raised in New York City. After earning a bachelor’s degree in creative writing from Penn State University, she returned to her hometown to attend the Summer Publishing Institute at NYU, where she received a certificate in book and magazine publishing. She is now a production editor as well as a freelance proofreader and copyeditor. This fall she will add adjunct instructor to her list of credentials, teaching a class in the fundamentals of proofreading at NYU’s School of Continuing and Professional Studies. Velasquez is thrilled to have achieved her goal of becoming a published author. She has written four books in Scholastic’s Maya & Miguel series based on the PBS show—My Twin Sister/My Twin Brother, Neighborhood Friends, The Valentine Machine, and Paint the Town—and three books in the Your Life, But… series: Your Life, but Better; Your Life, but Cooler; and Your Life, but Sweeter, which is due out this December from Delacorte Press. When she is not working, Velasquez enjoys spending time with friends and family, volunteering, and traveling. Most recently she participated in the Aegean Arts Circle Writer’s Workshop in Greece. |
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Audrey Vernick did not have any cud-chewers in her kindergarten class, but she still managed to have a pretty good time. She is the author of Is Your Buffalo Ready for Kindergarten and its 2011 sequel, Teach Your Buffalo to Play Drums. She also wrote the forthcoming She Loved Baseball: The Effa Manley Story, a School Library Guild selection (October 2010).Audrey is a two-time recipient of the New Jersey State Council on the Arts Fiction Fellowship. She lives near the ocean with one of each of the following: husband, son, daughter, dog. |
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Ellen Weiss has been writing books and other materials for and about children since 1972. She has also worked as an editor for Scholastic, Xerox Education Publications, HarperCollins, Children's Television Workshop, and Jim Henson Productions. Her spoken-word recordings have earned one Grammy award and one Grammy nomination; her song lyrics have won a Parents' Choice award, and her books have won three Children's Choice awards. She has written over 150 books, fiction and nonfiction, for children of all ages. Her newest books are The Taming of Lola and Porky and Bess. |
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Eric Wight is the author of the manga, My Dead Girlfriend. He illustrated the comic book adaptation of Michael Chabon's Pulitzer Prize winning novel The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay. He was the recipient of the 2004 Russ Manning Award. Wight was also an animator, working with Warner Bros. during the heyday of their animated output, working on such cartoons as Superman: The Animated Series, Batman Beyond, and others. Wight's newest series for children are the Frankie Pickle books and his next children's novel Swords of Doom will be released in the Fall of 2010. |
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Maryrose grew up in the wild suburbs of Long Island, moved to New York City at age 17 to study acting at New York University, then dropped out to be in the chorus of a Broadway musical — which flopped. In 2006 Maryrose's first novel for young adults was released. While Maryrose has primarily written for teens this year she launches her first middle grade novel series his year sees the launch of her first middle-grade series, The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place (starred reviews in Booklist, Kirkus, SLJ and Publishers Weekly, Junior Library Guild selection, yesss!), and a new YA series called The Poison Diaries (based on a concept by the Duchess of Northumberland, and inspired by the real-life poison garden at Alnwick Castle, US pub date July 20). Both are from the Balzer + Bray imprint at HarperCollins Children's Books. Maryrose lives in New York with her family and pets. |
Thank you to our planning committee: Allison Santos, Coordinator; Lucia Acosta; Courtney Bayne; Susan Conlon; Pamela Groves; Martha Perry- Liu; Suzanne Savidge; Ann Woodrow; Youth Services Staff; Lindsey Forden, Development Director; Tim Quinn, Public Information Director;
The Princeton Children's Book Festival is made possible by a partnership of Packet Publications of Princeton.
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