Helena Ku Rhee

Helena Ku Rhee is a children’s book author & essayist based in Los Angeles. Her picture books include SORA'S SEASHELLS (illustrated by Stella Lim & Ji-Hyuk Kim), ROSA'S SONG (illustrated by Pascal Campion) and its companion book THE PAPER KINGDOM (also illustrated by Pascal Campion), which landed on many Best of 2020 lists, including NPR, BookPage, Parents Magazine, Kirkus, the Los Angeles Public Library, Amazon, and more.

Helena also wrote THE TURTLE SHIP (illustrated by Colleen Kong-Savage) as well as essays for publications such as the Los Angeles Times and Salon.

Listen to her 6-minute interview on NPR: https://www.npr.org/2020/03/14/815250...

Helena wrote the popular article for Salon, "Making sense of a senseless world: how children's b

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Antwan Eady

Originally from Garnett, South Carolina, Antwan Eady is author of the award-winning picture book Nigel and the Moon, illustrated by Gracey Zhang.

Down the dirt roads of South Carolina’s Low Country is where Eady’s understanding of—and appreciation for—family, community, and nature unfolded. Now he shares those stories with the world. His upcoming titles include: The Last Stand, Poemhood: Our Black Revival (a Young Adult poetry anthology), The Gathering Table, Micah’s Rise, and Before the Bridge.

When he isn’t writing, he’s visiting schools, libraries, and colleges throughout the country.

A graduate of Clemson University, Antwan now lives in Savannah, Georgia.
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Cassidy Wasserman

Cassidy Wasserman is an artist in the game industry and is making her Graphic novel debut with On Guard! When she’s not creating, Cassidy enjoys épée fencing, listening to musicals, and agility training with her dog, Zag. Cassidy lives in the mountains of Maine, where she is working on her next graphic novel.
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Jenny Andrus

Jenny's debut picture book Elsa's Chessboard, published by Neal Porter Books, came out in April 2025. Her writing is inspired by her 14 years as a K-8 school librarian, where she shared picture books with kids every day. In the spring, you will find Jenny out on the bluffs of Northern California volunteering as a harbor seal docent. She's currently working on a true story about an abandoned seal pup. Visit Jenny at jennyandruswrites.com
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Cherry Mo

Cherry Mo grew up in Hong Kong and moved to the United States at the age of ten. HOME IN A LUNCHBOX is her debut picture book and was inspired by her first days of school in America. Cherry writes and illustrates stories that she hopes bring young readers a sense of comfort and belonging.

Praises for HOME IN A LUNCHBOX:

Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection

July/August 2024 Kids' Indie Next List Pick

"In an exceptional debut, Mo deploys digital illustrations that expertly use selective coloring to depict an experience of finding common ground." — Starred review from Publisher's Weekly

"Inspired by Mo's move from Hong Kong to the United States at the age of 10, this remarkable story about finding comfort in a new home by bringing along fam
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Joanna Ho

Joanna Ho Bradshaw is the author of Eyes that Kiss in the Corners (HarperCollins, Jan 2021), Playing at the Border: A Story of Yo-Yo Ma (HarperCollins, Fall 2021), and One Day (Winter 2023). She is a writer and educator with a passion for anti-bias, anti-racism and equity work. She holds a BA in psychology from the University of Pennsylvania, and a master’s from the Principal Leadership Institute at Berkeley. She has been an English teacher, a dean, the designer of an alternative-to-prison program, and a professional development mastermind. She is currently the vice principal of a high school in the Bay Area, where she survives on homemade chocolate chip cookies, outdoor adventures, and dance parties with her kids. Keep your eyes open for m
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Huda Fahmy

Huda Fahmy was born in Detroit, Michigan and attended the University of Michigan where she majored in English. She taught English to middle and high school students for eight years before she started writing about her experiences as a visibly Muslim woman in America and was encouraged by her older sister to turn these stories into comics. Huda, her husband Gehad, and their two boys reside in Houston, Texas.

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Ibtihaj Muhammad

Ibtihaj Muhammad is a fencer and the first Muslim American woman in hijab to compete for the United States in the Olympic Games. She is also the first female Muslim American to medal at the Olympic Games, winning bronze in the women’s saber team event. An activist, speaker, and entrepreneur, Ibtihaj has written a memoir, Proud, and inspired the first hijabi Barbie in her likeness.
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Vashti Harrison

Vashti Harrison, author and illustrator of the bestselling Little Leaders: Bold Women in Black History, is an artist, author, and filmmaker with a passion for storytelling. She earned her MFA in film and video from California Institute of the Arts, where she snuck into animation and illustration classes to learn from Disney and DreamWorks legends. There she rekindled a love for drawing and painting. Now she uses her love for both film and illustration to craft beautiful stories for children.
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Nabila Adani

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Will Millard

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Hope Lim

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Ibram X. Kendi

Dr. Ibram X. Kendi is the Andrew W. Mellon Professor in the Humanities at Boston University, and the founding director of the BU Center for Antiracist Research. He is a contributing writer at The Atlantic and a CBS News racial justice contributor. He is the host of the new action podcast, Be Antiracist.

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Sonia Sotomayor

Sonia Sotomayor, J.D. (Yale Law School, 1979; B.A., Princeton University, 1976), is the 99th Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, nominated by President Barack Obama to fill the seat of the retiring Justice David Souter and taking office August 8, 2009.

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Kyle Lukoff

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Mac Barnett

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Jory John

Jory John is a #1 New York Times bestselling author and two-time E.B. White Read-Aloud Honor recipient.

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Christopher Denise

Christopher Denise spent much of his childhood in Shannon, Ireland, exploring castles and dreaming of great adventures. He is the illustrator of many critically acclaimed books for young readers, including Anika Denise’s Bunny in the Middle, Alison McGhee’s Firefly Hollow, and Rosemary Wells’s Following Grandfather, as well as several in Brian Jacques’s award-winning Redwall series. His books have appeared on the Indie Next List and the New York Times bestseller list. Knight Owl (march 2022) marks his author-illustrator debut. Christopher’s current adventures include exploring coastal Rhode Island, where he lives with his family.
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Hope Lim

Hope Lim is the author of I AM A BIRD (Candlewick), MY TREE (Neal Porter Books/Holiday House) and MOMMY’S HOMETOWN (Candlewick), SOURGRASS (Beach Lane Books/S&S) and AT THE WINDOW (Candlewick). Born and raised in South Korea, Hope currently lives in San Francisco with her family and puppy, Bear.
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Young Vo

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Will Millard

Will Millard is a best-selling writer, ghost-writer, and broadcaster based in South Wales. Will specialises in writing about extraordinary humans and the natural world, for both adults and children. His first book 'The Old Man and the Sand Eel' followed his wild journey in pursuit of a fishing record and his latest, 'The Way of the Hermit', was written with Ken Smith, who has spent four decades alone in the Scottish Highlands. Will has written for numerous magazines, newspapers, and websites, including BBC News, The Daily Telegraph, Vice, The Guardian, Geographical, Fallon’s Angler, and Country File Magazine. He is also a BAFTA Cymru winning BBC presenter, with his international series 'Hunters of the South Seas' and 'My Year with the Tribe
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Howard Schwartz

Howard Schwartz is Professor Emeritus at the University of Missouri-St. Louis. He is a prolific writer who has published fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. In searching for themes and images for his work in various genres, he has often found his inspiration in biblical, midrashic, and kabbalistic lore. Many of his works retell ancient folktales, reflecting his belief in the importance of passing cultural lore from one generation to the next. His poetry frequently reflects the dreamlike and mysterious elements of Jewish mythology.
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