About the Artists

Marc Brown

Marc Brown is the creator of Arthur, the most popular aardvark in the world. What started out as a bedtime story has turned into a global phenomenon. From the Americas to China, Arthur turns up in books, schools, backpacks, and even bowls of macaroni-and-cheese. Arthur's Emmy Award-winning PBS television series is broadcast in over 60 countries.

Denise Brunkus

Denise Brunkus is a prominent picture-book illustrator with more than 60 books to her credit, including her most recent: Read All About It! written by Mrs. Laura Bush and Jenna Bush. She is well-known for the bestselling Junie B. Jones books/interviews/cleary, as well as Charlie Hits It Big and Chocolatina. She lives in Massachusetts with her husband and lots and lots of books.

About the authors of Read All About It!

Laura Bush has always been passionate about reading. An Honorary Ambassador for the UN Literary Decade, she hosted the first-ever White House Conference on Global Literacy in 2006 to encourage international cooperation and build free societies through literacy. In 2001 she joined with the Library of Congress to launch the first National Book Festival in Washington, D.C. As first lady of Texas, Mrs. Bush founded the statewide Texas Book Festival in 1995. She taught in Dallas, Houston, and Austin public schools.

Jenna Bush share's her mother's love of reading and teaching. Jenna taught elementary school in Washington, D.C. after graduating from the University of Texas at Austin in 2004 with a degree in English. She has also written articles for CosmoGIRL! and the New York Times. Her first book, #1 New York Times bestselling Ana's Story: A Journey of Hope, is based on her work with UNICEF.

Henry Cole

Henry Cole's illustrations have amused thousands of children in favorites like Rosie's Roses and The Worrywarts. His latest books are Big Chickens Fly the Coop, On Meadowview Street, and Katy Duck.

Bruce Degen

Bruce Degen's clever hand brings Ms. Frizzle to visual life in The Magic School Bus series. He has also illustrated the popular Jamberry; Jesse Bear, What Will You Wear?; and Commander Toad in Space.

David Diaz

David Diaz was awarded the 1995 Caldecott Medal for the bold and intricate illustrations he created for Smoky Night, written by Eve Bunting. Among his other books are Wilma Unlimited: How Wilma Rudolph Became the World's Fastest Woman and The Pot that Juan Built. David Diaz also designed the beautiful illustrations for ColorinColorado.org, a bilingual Reading Rockets site created especially for Spanish-speaking parents and teachers of English language learners.

Tracy Dockray

Tracy Dockray grew up on the plains of West Texas with a love of books and innumerable pets. She moved to New York where she studied fine art and acquired several old motorcycles. Her career veered from sculpture to puppet making to murals in hospitals, school playgrounds, and children's rooms and then finally to children's books, where she illustrates for the Beverly Cleary collection.

Kate Duke

Kate Duke's soft and energetic watercolors enliven her children's books, which include One Guinea Pig is Not Enough and Aunt Isabel Tells a Good One.

Marie-Louise Gay

Marie-Louise Gay is the illustrator of Houndsley and Catina and its sequels, as well as the author and illustrator of many other award winning children's books, including Caramba and the Stella and Sam series — which has been published in twenty languages. Gay has received numerous awards, including the 2005 Vicky Metcalf Award, the Ruth Schwartz Award, the Mr. Christie's Book Award, the Elizabeth Mrazik-Cleaver Canadian Picture Book Award, three Governor General's Awards, and the E.B.White Award for Houndsley and Catina.

Loreen Leedy

Loreen Leedy is the creator of many popular picture books such as Fraction Action and Measuring Penny. She recently co-authored (with Pat Street) and illustrated There's a Frog in My Throat! 440 Animal Sayings a Little Bird Told Me.

Betsy Lewin

Betsy Lewin has written and illustrated many books for children, including Duck for President and Click, Clack, Moo, for which she won a Caldecott Honor in 2001.

Chris Raschka

Chris Raschka contemplated several career options before settling on becoming an illustrator. His love of jazz inspired him to create his first book, Charlie Parker Played BeBop. His books that followed include the 1994 Caldecott Honors winner Yo! Yes? and The Hello, Goodbye Window, which won a Caldecott Medal in 2006.

Robert Sabuda

Since 1994 Robert Sabuda has taken three-dimensional pop-up books to new heights. Elaborate dinosaurs leap off the page in Encyclopedia Prehistorica: Dinosaurs and miniature versions of the Capitol building, Washington Monument, and Lincoln Memorial pop-up in America: the Beautiful. Sabuda has thrice been awarded the Meggendorfer Prize of the Movable Book Society of America. His most recent books include The Chronicles of Narnia Pop-up, Winter in White: A Mini Pop-up Treat, and Encyclopedia Prehistorica: Mega-Beasts.

Pat Schories

Pat Schories spent her childhood outdoors in the woods and fields of Ohio where she grew up. She spent her time indoors reading and making art. Schories is probably best known as the illustrator of the Biscuit books written by Alyssa Satin Capucilli. She is now using her story-telling skills to create new books starring Jack and his family. Jack and Biscuit are modeled after her own two beloved dogs, Speed and Spike.

Peter Sís

Peter Sís is the charming storyteller and acclaimed author and illustrator of Madlenka and Fire Truck. His Caldecott Honor Books include Tibet: Through the Red Box and Starry Messenger: Galileo Galilei. He was named a 2003 MacArthur Fellow. His most recent book, The Tree of Life, is about the life of Charles Darwin.

Javaka Steptoe

Javaka Steptoe is a young artist, designer, and illustrator. His debut work, In Daddy's Arms I Am Tall: African Americans Celebrating Fathers, earned him the Coretta Scott King Illustrator Award. As a young boy, he was a model and inspiration for his late father, award winning author/illustrator John Steptoe (Stevie). Steptoe uses everyday objects, from aluminum plates to pocket lint, and sometimes illustrating with a jigsaw and paint, to create collage creations filled with vitality, playful energy, and strength. Steptoe is committed to children's education, making appearances at various schools, libraries, museums, and conferences across the country, including the American Library Association, the International Reading Association, and Reading is Fundamental.