Author Archives - Page 10 of 29 - Hudson Childrens Book Festival

Yuksel, M.O.

Yuksel, M.O

M.O. Yuksel is an award-winning author of several acclaimed picture books, including In My Mosque, One Wish: Fatima al-Fihri and the World’s Oldest University, Ramadan Kareem, Sami’s Special Gift: An Eid al-Adha Story, and The Prince of Stars: Ulugh Beg’s Quest to Map the Stars and Seasons. Her books, honored with accolades like the Orbis Pictus Honor, ALA Notable, Junior Library Guild Gold Standard, and TLA Topaz Nonfiction Gem Award, celebrate diversity and offer rich insights into Muslim traditions that inspire readers of all ages. www.moyuksel.com.

Awards

Her books have won several awards, including American Library Association Notable Book, a School Library Journal Best Book, and a Junior Library Guild Gold Standard selection, Cooperative Children’s Book Center Best Choice, Notable Books for a Global Society, Anna Dewdney Honor Book, English Association Nonfiction Picture Book Award, Texas Library Association Topaz Nonfiction Gem Award, and Virginia Readers’ Choice Award, National Council of Teachers of English Orbis Pictus Recommended Book, an American Library Association Rise Honoree, a Children’s Book Council Notable Social Studies Trade Book, Nerdy Book Club Award for Best Nonfiction Picture Book, and School Library Journal Best Nonfiction Book.

3 Fun Facts

1. She lived on three continents and crossed two multiple times in one day! (Hint-hint: Istanbul, Türkiye, the city that spans two continents).
2. She speaks three languages – English, Turkish, Uzbek, and understands several – Spanish, Azeri, Kazak, Kyrgyz, Turkmen, Uyghur.
3. If she had her way, she’d eat dessert first at every meal (but don’t tell her kids!).

Bolling, Valerie

Valerie Bolling was an educator for 30 years and is passionate about creating stories in which all children can see themselves and feel seen and heard, valued and validated. Her debut picture book, LET’S DANCE!, was published in March 2020 and won SCBWI’s Crystal Kite Award in 2021.

Valerie is the author of five more picture books (Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection I SEE COLOR; Kirkus Prize Finalist TOGETHER WE SWIM; TOGETHER WE RIDE; RIDE, ROLL, RUN: TIME FOR FUN!; and BING, BOP, BAM: TIME TO JAM!) as well as a Scholastic Acorn early reader series, RAINBOW DAYS.

Sharing her books with children and inspiring them to write their own stories brings Valerie immense joy! Valerie and her husband live in Connecticut and enjoy traveling, hiking, reading, going to the theater, and dancing.
linktr.ee/ValerieBolling

Awards

SCBWI Crystal Kite Award fro LET’S DANCE! Kirkus Prize Finalist for TOGETHER WE SWIM My books have also been on “Best of” lists.

3 Fun Facts

1. I grew up in an extended family. I was the only child in a house of seven adults, living with my mother, grandmother, three great-aunts, and great-grandparents.
2. I have traveled to five of seven continents. In the future, I hope to have the opportunity to visit Australia and Antarctica.
3. I am never without a book. I have always loved to read. I read in the car, while waiting in lines, and on exercise equipment.

Rogers, Kheris

Kheris Rogers is an author and CEO of the widely known apparel brand and social movement “Flexin’ In My Complexion.” Born in 2006 in Los Angeles, California, Rogers started Flexin’ In My Complexion after years of bullying in school because of her dark skin complexion. At just 10 years old, she became the world’s youngest designer to ever showcase at New York Fashion Week. Her clothing line has been worn by celebrities such as Whoopi Goldburg, Lupita N’yongo, Lena Waithe, and Alicia Keys. flexininmycomplexion.com

Awards
Teen Vogue 21 Under 21, InStyle Magazine’s Badass 50 list, and honored by the Princess Diana Organization

3 Fun Facts

1. Kheris is a Leo, youngest designer to ever showcase at New York Fashion Week and is a teen entrepreneur

Trimmer, Christian

Trimmer, Christian

Christian Trimmer is the author of numerous books for children, most recently THE GOOD HAIR DAY (art by J Yang), WOMBAT, THE RELUCTANT HERO (art by Rachel Gyan), and WHAT ARE YOU? (art by Mike Curato). When he’s not writing stories, he’s editing them, most recently for MTV Books. He lives in Hillsdale, New York, with his husband. Learn more at christiantrimmer.com.

Awards

A Kirkus Reviews Best Book of 2023 (THE GOOD HAIR DAY)
Starred Reviews for THE GOOD HAIR DAY, SNOW PONY & THE SEVEN MINIATURE PONIES, and TEDDY’S FAVORITE TOY
Keystone to Reading Book Award (SIMON’S NEW BED)

3 Fun Facts

1. When I was 11, I broke my left thumb doing the shuttle run in gym class.
2. My favorite book when I was young was THE GIRL WHO OWNED A CITY by O.T. Nelson, a story in which all the adults in the world are gone.
3. I learned to drive stick shift in a Porsche (it wasn’t mine).

Reidy, Jean

Reidy, Jean

When Jean Reidy was a kid, she was a reader, a writer, a poet and a dreamer. She’s happy to still be that kid at heart. Her bestselling and award-winning picture books have earned their spots as favorites among readers and listeners of all ages and from all over the world. Truman, also illustrated by Lucy Ruth Cummins, was a Parents’ Choice Gold Award winner, a Charlotte Zolotow Honor winner, a Colorado Book Award winner and was recognized on “Best of” lists by School Library Journal, the New York Times, NPR and Amazon. Visit Jean at https://jeanreidy.com/.

3 Fun Facts

1. I’ve never had a pet spider, but I have resided with an assortment of not-so-well-behaved turtles, parakeets, lizards, goldfish, hamsters and even one feisty, fire-bellied toad.
2. My favorite food is crunchy peanut butter … right off the spoon.
3. I’m a fan of football, train trips and tall, tall mountains.

Bobrick, Rick

I taught science at the Hudson Junior High School for over 30 years. I became a published author after I retired when I turned an old bedtime story into my first book, Bears Don’t Share. All three of my books were illustrated by my niece, Lauren Sullivan, in a memorable family collaboration. www.rickbobrick.com

Awards

Being accepted at the Hudson Children’s Book Festival as a visiting author for three consecutive years. Quite an honor for a first-time author, even though I had an in!

3 Fun Facts

1. I raise turkeys and chickens in the spring, summer, and fall.
2. My main passion is fly fishing for wild brown trout in the Catskill mountains.
3. I work with ski patrol in the winter.

Gopal, Jyoti Rajan

Gopal, Jyoti Rajan

Jyoti Rajan Gopal is an award-winning picture book author, mom and forever kindergarten teacher. Her books have received starred reviews in Kirkus Reviews, Publisher’s Weekly, School and Library Journal, Book List, and Book Page and are on the Bank Street, NYPL and SLJ Best Books lists. She is the recipient of the ALA 2024 Stonewall Honor Award.

Jyoti writes stories – fiction and non-fiction – of identity, community and belonging, themes that speak to her heart and that reflect her multiple identities. https://www.jyotirajangopal.com/

Awards
ALA Stonewall Honor 2024 for Desert Queen

3 Fun Facts

1. I speak 5 languages.
2. I swam with whale sharks.
3. I love tiramisu.

Pullen, Mark David

Mark David Pullen is the author of the middle-grade series The Oasis Chronicles. His debut novel, The Oasis King, was released in February of 2023. Mark combines his love of science fiction and fantasy with action and adventure to create wholesome, fast-paced stories the entire family can enjoy together. Mark lives in Upstate New York with his wife, two children, and crazy old hound dog, Toby. www.theoasisking.com

Awards

PenCraft Literary Award Winner, NYS Book Festival Honorable Mention, Outstanding Creator Award- Winner

3 Fun Facts

1. Loves to cook.
2. Avid Outdoorsman.
3. 90s video games are the best!

Ausherman, Maria Elizabeth

Maria Elizabeth Ausherman, a teacher and independent scholar, lives in Stuyvesant, New York with her husband, Steven Taylor, a photographer. She has two wonderful grown-up daughters and an awesome granddaughter. She enjoys travel, hiking, reading, and spending time with her family, friends, and neighbors.

The author of Masters of Shape: The Lives and Art of American Women Sculptors, Behind the Camera: American Women Photographers Who Shaped How We See the World, The Photographic Legacy of Frances Benjamin Johnston, and co-author with Patricia Jennings of Georgia O’Keeffe’s Hawaii, she earned her B.A. in Geography from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, an M.A. in Cinema Studies from the City University of New York and an M.Ed. in Social Science Education from the University of Georgia in Athens, where she also obtained a graduate certificate in historic preservation and completed coursework and a dissertation for a Ph.D. in Art.

Awards
– League of Women Voters Citizenship Award
– Cherokee Rose Garden Club Award
– Next Generation Indie Book Award Finalist for Historical (Non-Fiction)
– Starred Reviews

3 Fun Facts

1. Maria wants people to love art history as much as she does.
2. Maria loves team work. She played wing on the Varsity Women’s Field Hockey team at the University of North Carolina, in Chapel Hill where she grew up.
3. Maria’s favorite job of all time was using a 1733 Danish map to find historic plantation sites on St. John, the smallest of the three main U.S. Virgin Islands.

Keller, Joy

Joy Keller is the author of fun and fantastic picture books, including MONSTER TRUCKS, MISS TURIE’S MAGIC CREATURES, and FUNGUS IS AMONG US! When she’s not writing about mythical beasts and weird science, she can be found teaching fourth graders how to write their own stories. She lives in Fairport, NY, with her husband, kids, and lots of pets. www.joykellerauthor.com

All my books have received positive reviews from Kirkus, Booklist, and School Library Journal.

3 Fun Facts

1. I’m a fourth grade teacher, so I get lots of story ideas from the students I work with every day.
2. My family fosters cats. We ended up adopting our last foster kitten, so now we own FOUR cats!
3. I play ukulele—it’s so much fun!