Meet our 2008 Authors and Illustrators!

Jeanne DuPrau

Jeanne DuPrau stormed into the world of fiction writing with the success of her novel The City of Ember. DuPrau was born in San Francisco and grew up an avid reader of books set in imaginary worlds. She worked with words as a teacher, editor and technical writer before writing books of her own. She wrote several non-fiction books for young adults and before creating her own world in The City of Ember. The book was an immediate success and let to three more books about Ember, The People of Sparks, The Prophet of Yonwood and most recently The Diamond of Darkhold: The Fourth Book of Ember. All of her books explore a world in which young people are more clear-eyed about the future than the adults in power. Jeanne DuPrau writes her intriguing, exciting novels in Menlo Park, California. For lots more information on Jeanne, see her website at www.jeanneduprau.com

Anna Grossnickle Hines

Picture book author and illustrator Anna Grossnickle Hines clearly understands the emotions of young children. Hines was born in Cincinnati, Ohio and decided at an early age to write children's books. She earned a B.A. and an M.A. in Human Development from Pacific Oaks College and came to illustrating after teaching for several years because she had been discouraged from considering illustration a respectable art form. Her books include the award-winning Daddy Makes the Best Spaghetti and My Own Big Bed. These books, like many she has written and illustrated over the years, are realistic, reassuring and perfectly tuned to young listeners. Many of Hines' books reflect her love of nature and recently she has turned to illustrating with quilts. Pieces: A Year in Poems and Quilts won many awards including the Lee Bennett Hopkins Award for excellence in poetry. She has over fifty books to her name. Ms. Hines lives in Gualala, California. Her website address is www.aghines.com.

Thacher Hurd

Thacher Hurd grew up in a household where the business of the day was writing and illustrating books for children. He was born in Vermont and earned his B.F.A at the California College of Arts and Crafts. His more than twenty-five picture books are regularly admired for the wildly colorful watercolor illustrations and energy in both the stories and art. Mama Don't Allow, won a Boston Globe Horn Book Award for illustration in 1985. Mama Don't Allow and Art Dog, published in 1996, remain two of his most popular books. Toddlers delight in the funny, rhythmic board books Cat's Pajamas and Zoom City (a New York Times best illustrated book). Most recently his picture books take young readers out of this world, when aliens abduct a cow in Moo Cow Kaboom! and cars travel the skies in Sleepy Cadillac: A Bedtime Drive. With his wife Olivia he is the co-owner of Peaceable Kingdom Press. Thacher Hurd lives and works in Berkeley California.

To learn all about Thacher and his books, his website address is www.thacherhurd.com.