Jerdine Nolen is the beloved author of many award-winning books, including
Big Jabe;
Thunder Rose, a Coretta Scott King Illlustrator Honor Book; and
Hewitt Anderson's Great Big Life, a Bank Street Best Book of the Year, all illustrated by Kadir Nelson. She is also the author of
Eliza's Freedom Road, illustrated by Shadra Strickland, which was an ALA/YALSA Best Fiction Nominee for Young Adults;
Raising Dragons, illustrated by Elise Primavera, which received the Christopher Award; and
Harvey Potter's Balloon Farm, illustrated by Mark Buehner, which was made into a movie by the same name. Her other books include
Calico Girl, a Kirkus Reviews Best Book of the Year, and
Irene's Wish, illustrated by A.G. Ford, which
Kirkus Reviews called "delightful and memorable" in a starred review. Ms. Nolen is an educator and lives in Ellicott City, Maryland.
Kadir Nelson is an award-winning American artist whose works have been exhibited in major national and international publications, institutions, art galleries, and museums. Nelson is the illustrator of many beloved, award-winning, and bestselling picture books including, We Are the Ship: The Story of Negro League Baseball, winner of the Coretta Scott King and Robert F. Sibert Award; Thunder Rose, written by Jerdine Nolen, which received a Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor Award; Ellington Was Not a Street, written by Ntozake Shange, which received a Coretta Scott King Illustrator Award; Hewitt Anderson's Great Big Life, written by Jerdine Nolen, which won the 2005 Society of Illustrators Gold Medal; and Mama Miti: Wangari Maathai and the Trees of Kenya by Donna Jo Napoli called "stunning" by Kirkus Reviews in a starred review. He is also the illustrator of Deloris Jordan and Roslyn M. Jordan's Salt in His Shoes and Spike Lee and Tonya Lewis Lee's Please, Baby, Please and Please, Puppy, Please. Kadir Nelson lives in Los Angeles.