Judith Blume is an American writer of children's, young adult, and adult fiction. Blume began writing in 1959 and has published more than 25 novels. Among her best-known works are Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret. (1970), Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing (1972), Deenie (1973), and Blubber (1974). Blume's books have significantly contributed to children's and young adult literature. She was named one of the 100 most influential people in the world by Time magazine in 2023.
Gary Anthony Soto is an American poet, novelist, and memoirist.
PatMora is an American poet and author of books for adults, teens and children. Her grandparents came to El Paso from northern Mexico. A graduate of the University of Texas at El Paso, she received Honorary Doctorates from North Carolina State University and SUNY Buffalo, and is an Honorary Member of the American Library Association. A literacy advocate, in 1996, she founded Children's Day, Book Day, in Spanish, El día de los niños, El día de los libros now celebrated across the country each year on April 30.
Arnold Stark Lobel was an American author of children's books, including the Frog and Toad series and Mouse Soup. He wrote and illustrated these picture books as well as Fables, a 1981 Caldecott Medal winner for best-illustrated U.S. picture book. Lobel also illustrated books by other writers, including Sam the Minuteman by Nathaniel Benchley published in 1969.
Shrek! is a fantasy comedy picture book published in 1990 by American book writer and cartoonist William Steig, about a repugnant green monster who leaves home to see the world and ends up marrying an ugly princess. The book was generally well received upon publication, with critics praising the illustrations, originality, and writing. Critics have also described Shrek as an antihero and noted the book's themes of satisfaction and self-esteem. The book served as the basis for the first Shrek film (2001) and the popular Shrek film series starring Mike Myers over a decade after its publication.
The Hundred Dresses is a children's book by Eleanor Estes, illustrated by Louis Slobodkin, published in 1944. In the book, a Polish girl named Wanda Petronski attends a Connecticut school where the other children see her as "different" and mock her.
Kitten's First Full Moon is an American children's picture book written and illustrated by Kevin Henkes. Published in 2004, the book tells the story of a kitten who thinks the moon is a bowl of milk and tries many different attempts to drink it. Henkes won the 2005 Caldecott Medal for his illustrations. The book is in black and white and typeset in sans-serif. The idea came from a line in another book by Henkes, "The cat thought the moon was a bowl of milk." Henkes gradually expanded on that for Kitten's First Full Moon.
Carmen Agra Deedy is an author of children’s literature, storyteller and radio contributor.
A Bad Case of Stripes is a children's book written and illustrated by David Shannon published in 1998 by Blue Sky Press, a division of Scholastic Press. A Bad Case of Stripes highlights the theme of being true to oneself and is commonly used by educators to teach young students important values. Amongst some negative response, this children’s book is also praised for its creativity, illustrations, and meaningful lessons.
Denise Vega is an author of young-adult novels and of children's picture books and a faculty member at Regis University. Her debut novel, Click Here : , was released in December 2007 by Little, Brown.
Curious George is a children's book written and illustrated by Margret Rey and H. A. Rey, and published by Houghton Mifflin in 1941. The first book in the Curious George series, it tells the story of an orphaned monkey named George and his adventures with the Man with the Yellow Hat. For 80 years, it has sold over 25 million copies, and has been translated into various different languages such as Japanese, French, Afrikaans, Portuguese, Swedish, German, Chinese, Danish, and Norwegian. It is also in the Indie Choice Book Awards Picture Book Hall of Fame and has been the subject of scholarly criticism.
Lucia M. Gonzalez is a children's author and librarian. In 2020 she was elected as president of the Association for Library Service to Children of the American Library Association. She was president of REFORMA in 2010-2011.
The Border Regional Library Association (B.R.L.A.) promotes libraries and librarianship in the tri-border region of West Texas, Southern New Mexico and Northern Chihuahua, Mexico. The non-profit organization was founded in 1966 and, as of 2009, has over 100 members including libraries, librarians, trustees, and library paraprofessionals. B.R.L.A. events and awards include an annual continuing education workshop and banquet, Librarian and Staff Member of the Year awards and annual scholarship awards. The organization is best known for its annual Southwest Book Awards for noteworthy books about the Southwest published in any genre and geared toward any audience. Past winners include James Carlos Blake, Charles Bowden, Dennis DeConcini, Tomie dePaola, Arturo Islas, Neil Miller, Pat Mora, Benjamin Alire Sáenz, Rubén Salazar, Sergio Troncoso, and Luis Alberto Urrea.
Smile is an autobiographical graphic novel written by Raina Telgemeier. It was published in February of 2010 by Graphix, an imprint of Scholastic Inc. The novel provides an account of the author's life, characterized by dental procedures and struggles with fitting in, from sixth grade to high school. The book originated as a webcomic, which was serialized on Girlamatic. It is most appropriate for readers between fourth and sixth grade. Smile has had a pedagogical impact, and reviews have been written on this novel.
Meg Medina is an American children’s book author of Cuban descent whose books celebrate Latino culture and the lives of young people. She is the 2023 – 2024 National Ambassador of Young People’s Literature. Medina is the recipient of the 2019 John Newbery Medal for her middle grade novel, Merci Suárez Changes Gears.
Last Stop on Market Street is a 2015 children's book written by American author Matt de la Peña and illustrated by Christian Robinson, which won the 2016 Newbery Medal, a Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor, and a Caldecott Honor. The book follows a young boy named CJ as he learns to appreciate the beauty in everyday things during a bus ride. De la Peña and Robinson both drew on personal experiences when working together to create the book. Through its story and illustrations, Last Stop on Market Street tackles issues of race and class as they may be seen through the eyes of a young teen. Last Stop on Market Street was met with widespread acclaim after its release, receiving positive reviews from Kirkus Reviews and the New York Times Book Review amongst many others. Last Stop on Market Street's Newbery win was monumental, as it is extremely rare for picture books to be awarded this medal. In 2018, the children's book was adapted into a children's musical which has been performed by various children's theater groups across the country.
The Dog Who Had Kittens is a 1991 children's picture book by Polly M. Robertus and illustrated by Janet Stevens. It is about a basset hound who finds himself adopting some kittens.
Judith Byron "Judy" Schachner is an American children's writer and illustrator. Her works include the Skippyjon Jones series. Schachner lives in Swarthmore, Pennsylvania, with her husband, Bob, and a dog and her two Siamese cats.
Mónica Brown is a Peruvian-American academic and author of children's literature. Known for her Lola Levine and Sarai chapter book series, as well as numerous biographies covering such Latin American luminaries as Tito Puente, Celia Cruz, Dolores Huerta, and Cesar Chavez, she writes relatable characters that highlight the nuance and diversity of the Latinx experience and girl empowerment. Her motivation is to show that bicultural children are not made up of cultural fractions but whole people with a rich and vibrant cultural heritage, such as her character the bicultural red-headed Peruvian-Scottish-American Marisol McDonald. Brown is also an English professor at Northern Arizona University.
Our Subway Baby is a picture book written by Peter Mercurio, illustrated by Leo Espinosa, and published September 15, 2020 by Dial Press. The book tells the true story of how Pete and his husband, Danny, found and eventually adopted their son, Kevin.
