Sriram
Meera draws from her life straddling the East and West to tell stories. She grew up in India and moved to the United States at the turn of the millennium. An electrical engineer in the past, she now writes for children and advocates for diversifying bookshelves. Meera felt compelled to tell her stories when she […]
Mo
Cherry Mo is the Caldecott-Honor winning author-illustrator of her debut picture book, Home In A Lunchbox (June 2024), from Penguin Workshop. This book is inspired by Cherry’s personal experience of moving from Hong Kong to America at the age of ten. Through writing and illustrating, she hopes to bring young readers a sense of comfort […]
Faruqi
When Reem Faruqi taught second grade, her favorite time was “Read Aloud” time. Now, her favorite time at home is reading with her daughters. Reem Faruqi is the award-winning author of Lailah’s Lunchbox, a picture book based on her own experiences as a young Muslim girl immigrating to the United States. Of Pakistani origin, Reem […]
Rum
Etaf Rum is a Palestinian-American New York Times Bestselling author. Her debut novel, A Woman Is Man, garnered attention as a Today Show Read with Jenna Pick, marking the beginning of her literary acclaim. With her latest novel, Evil Eye, recognized as an NPR Best Book of the Year, Etaf Rum solidifies her position as […]
Nijhuis
Michelle Nijhuis is the author of Beloved Beasts: Fighting for Life in an Age of Extinction, a history of the modern conservation movement that was named one of the best books of 2021 by The Chicago Tribune, Smithsonian Magazine, Booklist, and other publications. Michelle writes about conservation and climate change for publications including National Geographic, […]
Rogers
Kim Rogers is the author of Just Like Grandma, winner of the 2024 Charlotte Zolotow Award, 2024 Ezra Jack Keats Award Honor for Writer, illustrated by Julie Flett; A Letter for Bob, winner of the 2024 American Indian Youth Award (AIYA), 2024 Charlotte Zolotow Highly Commended Title, illustrated by Jonathan Nelson; and I Am Osage: […]
Leali
Michael Leali (he/him) is an author and educator born and raised in the Chicago suburbs and currently living in the San Francisco Bay Area. He holds an MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from Vermont College of Fine Arts. When Michael isn’t writing, he enjoys reading, playing board games, and a nice long […]
Johnson
Sadeqa Johnson, a former public relations manager, spent several years working with well-known authors such as J.K. Rowling, Amy Tan and Bishop T.D. Jakes before becoming an author herself. She is a New York Times Bestselling author of five novels. Her novel, The House of Eve was an instant New York Times Best Seller, Target […]
Shelton Harris
Terah Shelton Harris is a librarian and freelance writer, who now writes upmarket fiction with bittersweet endings. Her first novel, One Summer in Savannah, was a LibraryReads and Target Book Club Pick. Her second book, Long After We Are Gone, was published in May 2024. As a freelancer, her work has appeared in consumer and […]
Howell
Rebecca Gayle Howell is an internationally-celebrated poet. Known for merging modes like myth and realism, Howell’s work concerns the spiritual imagination during climate change. Her books include Render / An Apocalypse and American Purgatory, both novels-in-verse that were named Bestsellers of the Decade by Small Press Distribution. Since its publication in 2013, Render has become […]