During the first week of February, the world celebrates Children’s Authors and Illustrators Week!
This week honors the contributions of authors and illustrators who write books and/or produce art for children and young adults. We always remember the beloved picture books we read (or were read) as children and these authors and illustrators not only inspire a love of reading but also a lifelong affection for writing and art too!
Here at the library, we love any opportunity to show off some of the great books in our collection and this week is no different!
Now you've probably heard of a lot of classic children's book author/illustrators like: Eric Carle, Jerry Pinkney, Jan Brett, & Lois Ehlert.
While I encourage you to check out all those classics, today, you're going to get some recommendations from me!
To celebrate Children’s Authors and Illustrators Week, I am so happy to share with you a list of twelve of my favorite picture book author/illustrators.
These awesome humans are fantastic writers, they illustrate their own works, and many of them illustrate for other authors too! There's a wide range of styles from serious and realistic to fun and whimsical but I love them all!
So make sure you pick a few new stories and head to your local library branch to check them out and celebrate Children’s Authors and Illustrators Week with us!
And for even more great recommendations, make sure to head over to our dedicated kids page for lists of prestigious award-winning authors and illustrators.
Vashti Harrison is a New York Times bestselling author-illustrator. She is an artist and filmmaker with a passion for storytelling. She earned her BA in studio art and media studies from the University of Virginia and her MFA in Film/Video from CalArts, where she snuck into animation and illustration classes to learn from Disney and DreamWorks legends. There, she rekindled a love for drawing and painting. Now she uses her love of both film and illustration to craft beautiful stories for children.
Vashti Harrison has written and illustrated several picture books and adapted board books while also serving as illustrator for several other authors. She also illustrates beautiful covers for middle grade novels.
Written and/or Illustrated
Chris Haughton is an acclaimed Irish illustrator and author based in London. Before becoming a picture book author, Chris traveled the world and worked as a waiter in San Francisco, a handyman in London’s Paddington Station, an English teacher in Hong Kong, and an art teacher in India. On his trips to India and Nepal, he became interested in fair trade and got involved with a number of non-profit projects. In 2007, he was listed in Time magazine's "DESIGN 100" for the design work he did for People Tree.
His debut book 'Little Owl Lost' was first published in Korean. It has been translated into 19 languages and won 10 awards in 8 countries.
Written and/or Illustrated
Prior to pursuing a career in picture books, Molly Idle worked as an artist for DreamWorks Feature Animation studios in California, but has since set up shop in the sunny state of Arizona, where she works and lives with her marvelous, multigenerational family which includes: her brilliant husband, two mercurial sons, two remarkable parents, two snugly cats and an inseparable pair of lovebirds.
Molly Idle is the sole creator of both wordless (the Flora series) and traditional picture books and has also Illustrated titles for a number of other authors including Kristyn Crow's Zombelina series.
Written and/or Illustrated
Brian Lies was born in Princeton, NJ, and graduated from Brown University in 1985 with a degree in British and American Literature. He attended the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston for 2.5 years, and created Op/Ed page illustrations for numerous publications, including the Boston Globe, Chicago Tribune and Christian Science Monitor. He illustrated his first children’s book for Houghton Mifflin Company in 1989, and has since illustrated nearly thirty others, including his 2019 Caldecott Honor-winning The Rough Patch, and his New York Times bestselling bat series. Brian’s work has garnered many publishing awards, and can be found in galleries around the country. He enjoys visiting elementary schools around the US, talking about writing and illustration. He and his wife, Laurel, live in Duxbury, MA with their daughter and two cats.
Written and/or Illustrated
Juana Martinez-Neal is the recipient of the 2019 Caldecott Honor for Alma and How She Got Her Name (Candlewick Press), her debut picture book as author-illustrator. She also the recipient of the 2020 Robert F. Sibert Medal for Fry Bread: A Native American Story (Roaring Brook) and the 2018 Pura Belpré Medal for Illustration for La Princesa and the Pea (Putnam).
Juana was named to the International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY) Honor list in 2014, and was awarded the SCBWI Portfolio Showcase Grand Prize in 2012. She was born in Lima, the capital of Peru, and now lives in Connecticut, with her husband and three children.
Written and/or Illustrated
Oge Mora is a collage artist and storyteller. Her picture book, Thank You, Omu!, was a Caldecott Honor, Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe New Talent Award winner, and Ezra Jack Keats Book Award recipient. Her second book, Saturday won the 2020 Boston Globe—Horn Book Picture Book Award. Oge’s artwork has been applauded by The Washington Post, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and The Boston Globe. She also recently made the Forbes 30 Under 30 2021 list in Arts & Style.
Oge grew up in Columbus, Ohio but resides in Providence, RI. She is a fan of all things colorful, patterned, or collaged, and enjoys creating warm stories that celebrate people coming together.
Written and/or Illustrated
Kadir Nelson is an award-winning American author and artist based in Los Angeles, California. Nelson received a BFA from Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York, and upon graduating with highest honors, he was summoned by DreamWorks Pictures to create conceptual artwork. Nelson has authored and illustrated several award- winning New York Times Best Selling picture books including, “WE ARE THE SHIP: The Story of Negro League Baseball”, and “Heart and Soul: The Story of America and African Americans”. Currently, he has over 30 children’s book titles in print with a global circulation in the millions, and in multiple languages. He is the recipient of multiple awards from the Society of Illustrators in New York, including the prestigious Hamilton King Award as well the 2020 recipient of the Caldecott Medal and Coretta Scott King Award for illustration.
Written and/or Illustrated
Greg Pizzoli studied English Literature at Millersville University before volunteering for the AmeriCORPS Volunteers in Service to America program. After two years as a VISTA volunteer, Greg earned his Masters of Fine Art in Book Arts and Printmaking from The University of the Arts in Philadelphia. Greg taught silkscreen for seven years at UArts before leaving to pursue making picture books full-time.
Greg Pizzoli works in a studio he shares with his wife Kay Healy, who is a printmaker and fiber artist. They live in South Philadelphia with their daughter, dog, and cats.
Written and/or Illustrated
Duncan Tonatiuh (toh-nah-tee-YOU) is an award-winning author-illustrator. He is both Mexican and American. He grew up in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico and graduated from Parsons School of Design and Eugene Lang College in New York City. His artwork is inspired by Pre-Columbian art, particularly that of the Mixtec codices. His aim is to create images and stories that honor the past, but that are relevant to people, specially children, nowadays.
Tonatiuh’s illustrations and picture books have won several awards and honors including, Pura Belpré, the Américas Award, and the Tomás Rivera Mexican American children’s book award.
Written and/or Illustrated
Joyce Wan is an author and illustrator of best-selling books for children. Joyce’s interest in the arts can be traced all the way back to first grade when she won first place in a city-wide greeting card design contest sponsored by the Art Institute of Boston. Twenty years later, that design would inspire her to launch her own design studio called Wanart where she designed and manufactured greeting cards that were sold to shops and boutiques all over the world. These greeting cards led her to children's book publishing after meeting an art director at a trade show.
Joyce is inspired by Japanese pop culture, modern architecture, and things that make her smile. She currently lives in New Jersey with her husband and daughter
Written and/or Illustrated
Brian Won wore many hats as a busboy, shoe salesman, library shelver, art director, and designer before making children's books. His debut book, Hooray for Hat!, was published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.
A Chicago native, Brian graduated from California’s Art Center College of Design with a BFA in illustration. Brian's awards include the Silver Medal by the Society of Illustrators and the Crystal Kite from the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators. He currently lives in southern California with his wife and son.
Written and/or Illustrated
Louise Yates writes and illustrates books, draws and paints. Her first book A Small Surprise, was published by Random House in 2009. In 2010, Louise won the Prince of Wales’ Award For Portrait Drawing at the Royal Society of Portrait Painters’ Annual Exhibition. Dog Loves Books was published in 2010, debuted as a New York Times Bestseller and won the Parents’ Choice Award in the US. In the UK, Dog Loves Books won the 2010 Roald Dahl Funny Prize, and was nominated for the Kate Greenaway Medal.
Louise read English at Christ Church, Oxford; and studied and taught at The Royal Drawing School, London. She lives and works in Dorset.
Written and/or Illustrated
Author biographies and descriptions adapted from publishers and/or author websites.