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Salima Alikhan (Pieces of Another World) decided to pursue a career in children's book illustration when sherealized her lifelong passion for art would never leave her alone. Salimastudied at the Corcoran Institute of Art in Washington, DC. Her favorite medium is watercolor. She begins most of her illustrations by drawing on cold-pressed watercolor paper, going over the drawing with ink, painting the picture, and then adding the final detail with watercolor pencil. To create the effect of snow, gravel, sand, stars, or coral, she often sprinkles salt on top of watercolor while it's still wet. When the paint dries, she shakes the salt off. The mineral compositions of different types of salts create different effects. Table salt leaves smaller spots, which are good for snow, gravel and stars; and sea salt or canning salt leave large circles, which are better for coral or sand. She has the good fortune of being an art teacher in a Montessori school, where she has learned lots about both art and children. She currently resides, teaches, and paints in Austin, TX. This is her first children's book.
To visit her website, click here.     
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Barbara J. Bergwerf- nature photographer extraordinaire has done it again. Barbara has collaborated with best-selling novelist Mary Alice Monroe on Turtle Summer: A Journal for Lovie which joins her other photographic book about loggerhead sea turtles; Carolina’s Story: Sea Turtles Get Sick Too! Both books stem from Barbara’s volunteer involvement at the South Carolina Aquarium’s Sea Turtle Hospital, the Island Turtle Team on Isle of Palms and Sullivan’s Island, and the South Carolina Center for Birds of Prey. Barbara thought that she was retiring when she and her husband left the Chicago area and moved to the South Carolina Lowcountry. Somehow “retirement” doesn’t seem to be in her vocabulary!
To visit her website, click here.                  
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Kirsten Carlson- is fascinated by animals and nature. Her background in biology, scientific illustration and design has given her the tools to share stories about the natural world through illustration. She believes illustrating children’s books are a wonderful way to connect others to nature. Prior to illustrating Ocean Seasons, Kirsten illustrated The Giraffe Who Was Afraid of Heights, also published by Sylvan Dell. Kirsten lives in Gig Harbor, Washington near the shores of Puget Sound. To visit her website, click here.                                                       
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Lisa Downey- is a freelance artist and graphic designer. Although she has always been interested in illustrating children's books, it was not until she worked with an in-house design firm at a paperboard book manufacturer that she realized children's books should be her focus. The combination of illustration, design and 3D surfaces to tell a story encompasses everything she has learned and enjoys doing. Lisa's style ranges from cartoonish to very representational. Her favorite medium is pastels. Lisa has illustrated Blackberry Banquet, Julie the Rockhound and Happy Birthday to Whooo? for Sylvan Dell. She lives in the SC Lowcountry, with her very supportive husband, Len, and their cats; Pom Pom and Ophelia.
To visit her website, click here.             
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Wendy Edelson (Saturn for my Birthday) illustrated the first of many books, “Whose Garden” at the age of 18. Since then she has divided her time between illustrating children’s books and “grown-up” books, and working on advertising and editorial projects. All of Wendy’s illustrations begin with very detailed pencils drawings and are then painted mostly with watercolor with the addition of occasional bits of colored pencil and pastel…the painting is definitely her favorite part! Wendy, her husband, and 4 cats currently live on an island in the Pacific Northwest. A corgi puppy will hopefully be joining the family soon!
To visit her website, click here.
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Kathryn Freeman (Loon Chase) spent many summers on Conway Lake in the White Mountains region in New Hampshire where she learned to use pastels from her uncle, the landscape artist Robert Jordan. He and Kathryn often took a canoe out at dawn to check on nesting loons. Kathryn is known foremost as a painter. Her works have been exhibited nationally and internationally and are held in numerous private and public collections. She has also done a number of large public commissions, including three story murals for the new public library in Jacksonville, Florida. While this is her first children’s book, it will likely not be her last! Her life-like pastels are superb.
To visit her website, click here.                                  
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John Himmelman (Tudley Didn't Know) has written and/or illustrated over 60 children's books since 1981. His award-winning book "Pipaluk and the Whales" (published by National Geographic) is based on the true story of how far people will go to save their wild neighbors. John's "Nature Upclose" series of 13 different books (published by Children's Press, a division of Scholastic) includes such titles as: A Monarch Butterfly's Life, A Pillbug's Life, A Luna Moth's Life, and A Woodfrog's, Life. He based his Animal Rescue Club (Harper Collins) beginning reader book on a group of real children who rescued orphaned and injured wildlife. John's first book for adults, Discovering Moths, was recently published by Downeast Books. Most of John's book stem from his obvious passion for animals and nature. When John isn't busy writing or illustrating his books, he is involved with the CT Butterfly Association, the Killingworth Land Conservation Trust, leads nature walks and gives natural history lectures throughout the country. He works with schools by offering special science observation programs, and teaches courses on children's book writing. As if he isn't busy enough, John has two children (one in college and one in high school) and a working wife (high school art teacher) with a busy life of her own. John says he has never lost his love of reading and ends each day curled up in bed with a good book!
To visit his website, click here.                                                             
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Ben Hodson- illustrates full time from his home in Ottawa, Canada. He loves a good adventure, like hiking the Pacific Crest Trail with a team of wild burros or living in a small village in Nepal. His published works for Sylvan Dell include 'Twas the Day Before Zoo Day, In Arctic Waters, and How the Moon Regained Her Shape (recipient of the Ben Franklin Award for best interior art). Other books include: I Love Yoga; Pigs Aren’t Dirty, Bears Aren’t Slow and Other Truths about Misunderstood Animals and Wishes and Worries: A Story to Help Children Understand a Parent Who Drinks Too Much Alcohol. Ben’s artwork for How the Moon Regained Her Shape was selected for the Society of Illustrators’ 26th Annual Original Art Exhibition and Ben was the 2004 recipient of the Glass Slipper Award from the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators’ Canadian Conference.
To visit his website, click here.                                                      
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Laura Jacques (pronounced Jakes) has more than 25 years of professional experience as an illustrator in the fields of advertising and publishing. Laura draws and paints traditionally using pencil, inks, acrylic and oils. In addition to illustrating Whistling Wings, her artwork has appeared in children’s books that focus on natural history, wildlife and the environment such as: At Home in the Rain Forest, Going to a Horse Farm, Sweet Magnolia, and The Field Trip. Her books have won several honors and awards, including “NSTA-CBS Outstanding Science Trade Books for Children” sponsored by the Children’s Book Council and the “KIND Children’s Book Award” sponsored by the Association for Humane and Environmental Education, a division of the Humane Society of the United States. She is a member of SCBWI, (Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators), PBAA, (Picture Book Artists Association) and WMIG (Western Massachusetts Illustrators Guild).
To visit her website, click here.
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Laurie Allen Klein has been a freelance artist for nearly 20 years. Over the last several years she has worked as the on-staff artist for a marine park, where she does everything from painting life-size sea animal murals, to illustrating children’s activity books. In addition to Little Skink’s Tail (watercolor), Laurie also illustrated If a Dolphin Were a Fish (colored pencils) for Sylvan Dell. Her other books include The Out to Pasture series, authored by Effie Wilder.   back to top

Karen Lee- has quite a humorous imagination, and it shows in her illustrations for One Odd Day, My Even Day and One Half Day . These books are full of odd (and even) hidden items that children will love to find. Karen has also written and illustrated ABC Safari. Each of her illustrations begins with thoughtful design and drawing. The paintings are finished with watercolor on illustration board. Karen majored in illustration at the Columbus (OH) College of Art and Design. She began her career as a storyboard artist and editorial illustrator but it wasn't until she had children of her own that she discovered her true artistic passion: children’s illustration. Karen’s ABC Safari was the runner up for the 2005 SCBWI Don Freeman Grant. She is also the recipient of the 2004 SCBWI Magazine Merit Award for Illustration for her wok in Highlights For Children. She and her husband, also an illustrator, are raising their family outside of Raleigh, NC. Karen’s children join her on many research trips to museums, zoos and aquariums–a tough job, but someone has to do it!
To visit her website, click here.         
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Connie McLennan- has been a successful freelance artist for almost 25 years since attending Academy of Art College in San Francisco. In addition to illustrating The Rainforest Grew All Around (watercolor and acrylic), Water Beds: Sleeping in the Ocean (oil), Riverbeds: Sleeping in the World's Rivers, and Octavia and Her Purple Ink Cloud (watercolor) for Sylvan Dell Publishing, she also illustrated The Wishing Tree and Domitila. Connie has illustrated numerous textbooks, and has provided illustrations for children's books and magazines for Harcourt, Holt Reinhart & Winston, Scott Foresman, Scholastic and Weekly Reader. In addition to her various illustrations, Connie has done numerous advertising projects. Connie lives with her husband and teenage son in northern California.
To visit her website, click here
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Sherry Neidigh, a graduate of Ringling School of Art and Design, has been freelance illustrating for over twelve years. Sherry’s love of animals and nature comes through in her bright, colorful art. In addition to illustrating The Best Nest for Sylvan Dell, Sherry has illustrated several trade and education titles including Who Needs That Nose?,  If I Had a Tail and Black and White.
To visit her website, click here
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Gary R. Phillips (Animals are Sleeping) has been a freelance illustrator for 22 years. He has illustrated for numerous clients in both the editorial and children’s illustration markets receiving an award for “Verse Page Illustrator of the Year” from “Highlights” magazine in 2003. Gary has several books to his credit, including 86 Years, The Legend of the Red Sox, The Naptime Book, Tiny Little Engine, and Santa’s Little Sleigh.  He also taught as an adjunct professor for several semesters. Gary lives in outside of Philadelphia with his wife, two daughters, and two Siamese cats. He loves running, being out in nature and drawing wherever he goes.
To visit his website, click here
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Consie Powell- is an author, illustrator and a visual storyteller. Because she loves the outdoors, much of her work centers on nature and the environment. In addition to illustrating A Day in the Salt Marsh, Consie has also written and illustrated the award-winning Leave Only Ripples: A Canoe Country Sketchbook ( which won the Sigurd Olson Nature Writing Award), The First Day of Winter, Amazing Apples, Old Dog Cora and the Christmas Tree, A Bold Carnivore: An Alphabet of Predators and has illustrated Baby Bear Isn’t Hungry and Who Lives in the Snow? She also edits, designs, illustrates and occasionally writes for the North Carolina WILD Notebook (the young readers’ feature in the monthly Wildlife in North Carolina magazine), and has created artwork for the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences and the North Carolina Zoo. Consie and her husband spend the academic year in North Carolina and the summer in the isolated lake country of northern Minnesota where she loves to paddle her wooden canoe and explore marshes and bogs. And, of course, she always has her sketchbook handy.
To visit her website, click here.                                                                     back to top

Sherry Rogers- spent twelve years as a corporate graphic designer and artist before “leaving it all behind” for the freelance world. Sherry has developed a unique style of painting digitally on her computer. Just like a “traditional artist,” Sherry sketches by hand. When happy with the composition, she scans it into the computer. Just as she would use a “normal” paint brush, she paints her illustrations stroke for stroke on her computer in her program of choice, Photoshop. She laughs that the paint clean up is much easier than it used to be! Sherry has illustrated Kersplatypus, Burro’s Tortillas and If You Were a Parrot for Sylvan Dell and her first book, Counting Little Geckos was published in the summer of 2005. Sherry, her husband and two children live in Northern California. To visit her website, click here. To visit her blog, click here.                   back to top  

Emanuel (Manny) Schongut (Christmas Eve Blizzard and Turtles in my Sandbox) is a prolific, multi-faceted freelance illustrator who works in children's books, book covers, textbook illustration, editorial art, posters, and advertising art – essentially he does it all!. Some of his numerous clients include Masterpiece and Mystery Theater, Public Television, New York Magazine, and New York Times Sunday Magazine. His cover art and/or illustrations grace books from a wide variety of book publishers including Harper & Row, MacMillan, Doubleday, Morrow, Green Willow Books, and now Sylvan Dell. In addition to his own artwork, Manny taught reportorial art and figure drawing at Pratt Institute in New York for several years. He now illustrates and teaches in the San Francisco Bay area.
To visit his website, click here.
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Katherine Zecca- was a scientific illustrator and graphic artist for NOAA, where she created illustrations of seals, whales, dolphins, crabs and fish for marine biologists. Celebrating the 125th Anniversary of NOAA Fisheries, Katherine was presented a National Award for her illustration of an historical poster. She continues to illustrate for the Smithsonian's National Zoo and created a logo for the National Museum of American Art. In addition to In My Backyard, Katherine has written and illustrated a book about the Atlantic Puffin for Down East Books. Katherine teaches nature journaling/sketching, from as far a field as the Pribilof Islands, Alaska, to New Brunswick, and Maine. Katherine and her husband live in a small town outside of Seattle. 
To visit her website, click here                  

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