quick links
Arthur Levine is the publisher of Arthur A. Levine Books, which was
founded in 1996 as an imprint of Scholastic. His authors
come from near and far including Portland natives Allen Say, Linda
Zuckerman, Laini Taylor, and Jim DiBartolo as well as J.K. Rowling
(Scotland), Nahoko Uehashi (Japan), Karlijn Stoeffels (the Netherlands),
and Shaun Tan (Australia.) To read more visit his website.
Bonny Becker is the author of 12
children’s books, including picture books and novels. Her latest book,
A Visitor for Bear, was a New York Times best seller and
Amazon's pick for the 2008 Picture Book of the Year. She's an instructor for
the Whidbey Writers MFA in Writing program, a freelance editor, and an
experienced writing consultant with special knowledge of story structure.
www.bonnybecker.com
Susan Blackaby has worked in
educational publishing for over 25 years. Ms. Blackaby writes fiction and
nonfiction titles for the K–8 audience, including leveled readers,
early chapter books, and high-low fiction and nonfiction. On her own time,
she writes poetry, picture books, and middle-grade fiction. Her first picture
book, Rembrandt's Hat, was published in 2002; a
middle school biography of Cleopatra was published earlier in 2009; and she
has two projects currently in production.
Marla Frazee is the author-illustrator
of Roller Coaster, Santa Claus the World's Number One Toy
Expert, Walk On!,and A Couple of Boys Have the Best
Week Ever, which was named a Caldecott Honor book for 2008. She
is the illustrator of many other acclaimed books, including The
Seven Silly Eaters, the New York Times best-selling
Clementine series, and soon-to-be-published All the World. She
teaches children's book illustration at Art Center College of Design in
Pasadena, California, and works in a small studio cabin in the backyard
under an avocado tree. www.marlafrazee.com
David Gifaldi is a
Portland writer and teacher. His
eight published books for young readers have been honored by American
Booksellers' Pick of the Lists, ALA Books Recommended for Reluctant Young
Adult Readers, the Mark Twain Award Master List, the Dorothy Canfield
Fisher Children's Book Award Master List, and the Junior Library Guild.
Mr. Gifaldi holds an MFA in writing and is on the faculty of the Vermont
College of Fine Arts' MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults program.
He currently works as a literary specialist for Vancouver Public Schools,
Vancouver, Washington.
www.davidgifaldi.com
Ann Whitford Paul writes
poetry, early readers, and picture books. Her work has received much
recognition, including the Carl Sandburg Award for Children's Books.
Three new titles were out spring 2009: Word Builder,
Tortuga in Trouble, and Writing Picture Books: A Hands-On Guide
from Story Creation to Publication. She teaches writing at UCLA
Extension and speaks extensively in the United States and abroad.
www.annwhitfordpaul.com
Susan Goldman Rubin
has published more than 45 award-winning books for young people, with a
focus in recent years on nonfiction. Her latest titles include Whaam!
The Art and Life of Roy Lichtenstein; The Anne Frank Case: Simon
Wiesenthal's Search for the Truth; and a series of contemporary art
board books for the very youngest readers. Ms. Rubin has been an instructor
for the UCLA Extension Writers' program for 22 years.
www.susangoldmanrubin.com
Linda Urban's
debut novel, A Crooked Kind of
Perfect, received the Mitten Award for Outstanding Children's Literature
from the Michigan Library Association. The book has also been honored as a
New York Public Library Best Book for Reading and Sharing and an ALSC Notable
Children's Recording. It is currently listed on the master list for kids'
choice awards in several states. Her first picture book, Mouse Was
Mad, was published in May. For more than a decade, Ms. Urban served as
marketing director for Vroman's Bookstore, one of the country's largest
independents. She lives in Vermont with her husband and two kids, all of
whom love to be read to.
www.lindaurbanbooks.com
Elsa Warnick turned to illustration
after a successful career as a gallery artist. Among her illustrated books is
a three-book series on animal migration, with text by the acclaimed science
writer Seymour Simon, and the multi-award-winning Song for the Whooping
Crane, text by Eileen Spinelli. Ms. Warnick’s own book, Bedtime,
was a Children’s Book-of-the-Month Club Main Selection. Most recently,
she illustrated This is What I Pray Today, written by Phyllis Tickle.
Ms. Warnick currently teaches children's book illustration at Portland Community
College. www.elsawarnick.com
Linda Zuckerman has been a
children's book editor for 40 years. She is the editor of three books that
were awarded the Caldecott Medal and two that received Newbery Honor citations.
Ms. Zuckerman’s first book, I Will Hold You 'Til You
Sleep, was illustrated by Jon J. Muth; her novel, A Taste for
Rabbit, received the 2008 Oregon Book Award for Young Adult Literature.
She has been the director of the Pacific Northwest Children’s Book
Conference since its inception.