Author Archives - Page 6 of 32 - Hudson Childrens Book Festival

Houran, Lori Haskins

Houran, Lori Haskins

Lori Haskins Houran is a former children’s book editor and the author of more than sixty books for kids. Several of her books are about dogs, which makes sense, given that she has the two best pups on the planet. Oh, and the people in her house are pretty great, too. Lori lives with her family on the North Shore of Massachusetts. lorihaskinshouran.com

Awards

Glasses (2021) • Winner, NSTA/CBC Best Stem Book
Bicycle (2021) • Winner, NSTA/CBC Best Stem Book
Are You My Planet? (2021) • Best Children’s Book of the Year, Air & Space
Button Your Buttons (2020) • Starred review, Kirkus Reviews

3 Fun Facts

1. I once (and only once!) jumped out of an airplane.
2. I am (distantly!) related to art thief Myles Connor, a suspect in the Isabella Stewart Gardner museum heist.
3. In high school, I won third place in a state typing contest. That turned out to be a handy skill for a writer!

Sukumar, Suja

Sukumar, Suja

Suja Sukumar writes YA suspense novels featuring South Asian main characters battling villains while also dealing with their own inner demons. She is also a senior staff physician in a major health system in suburban Detroit, where she lives with her family and an elderly cat. When Mimi Went Missing is her debut novel. https://www.sujasukumar.com/

Awards

Listed on She Reads, Foreword Reviews, Teen Vogue, Booklist, Book Riot, Epic Reads, We Are Bookish, School Library Journal, among others.

3 Fun Facts

1. Started writing late (mid-forties) while working as a physician and never knew until then that I wanted to write.
2. I’ve failed miserably at plotting and am a pantser for life.
3. My TBR has taken over my home (keep buying books though I have so many I haven’t read).

Zhao, Kyla

Zhao, Kyla

Kyla Zhao writes novels starring women and girls of color who challenge gender stereotypes, including May the Best Player Win, Valley Verified, and The Fraud Squad. She and her books have been featured by media outlets such as CBS, NBC, ABC, Good Morning America, Vogue, Elle, Cosmopolitan, Buzzfeed, South China Morning Post, etc. Kyla has also been selected as a Forbes 30 Under 30 honoree, a Tatler Leader of Tomorrow, and awarded a Certificate of Recognition by the California State Assembly. She now works at a tech company in Silicon Valley after graduating from Stanford University in 2021. https://www.kylazhao.com

Awards

American Library Association (ALA) Feminist Book Project 2025 selection; Forbes 30 Under 30; Tatler Leader of Tomorrow; Certificate of Recognition by California State Assembly.

3 Fun Facts

1. I draft in font size 7.
2. I am a chocolate fiend but cannot stand plain chocolate (best combo: with peanut butter).
3. I love snapping photos of quirky custom license plates.

Myklusch, Matt

Myklusch, Matt

Matt Myklusch is the author of nine books, including the Imagine Nation, Jack Blank, Order of the Majestic, and Seaborne series. His lifelong love of comic books and stubborn refusal to grow up inspired him to write for kids. He lives in New Jersey with his family. Find him online at MattMyklusch.com.

Awards

Order of the Majestic: Junior Library Guild selection

3 Fun Facts

1. Worked at MTV for 10 years, produced spring break concerts in Cancun and Acapulco.
2. Love to draw (some of the comic book characters in my books I made up when I was in middle school).
3. Huge Disney fan… sometimes wish I became an Imagineer.

Jonsen Watkins, Helen

HJ_Chapp_Station_laugh_retouched-ctw-RM – Helen Jonsen

Jonsen Watkins, Helen

Helen Jonsen Watkins has spent a lifetime telling stories starting as a journalist on local, national and international television and online. She has written books for children and adults. She’s mom to four grown-up children who she always told made-up silly poems and magical stories.

The Magic Christmas Sleigh is Helen’s first illustrated storybook. It’s the premier entry in the Magic of the Holidays Book Series.

Helen is the Chief Storyteller at helen Jonsen media. She serves as a member of the Hudson Children’s Book Festival Board, the Board Development committee for CureSearch Foundation for Children’s Cancer, and is an advocate for the Hole in the Wall Gang Camp. She lives in the Hudson Valley with her Aussie husband. helenjonsen.com or Amazon

3 Fun Facts

1. I wrote this story for my four kids when they were little.
2. I live in the Hudson Valley.
3. I have lived in Australia & love to travel there.

Davis, Jacky & Soman, David

Davis, Jacky & Soman, David

Jacky Davis and David Soman are the creators of the New York Times best-selling LADYBUG GIRL series. Their new series ELVIS & ROMEO, features an outgoing doodle and a grumpy bulldog, who find the things that bind them together. blackpolka.com and davidsoman.com

Awards

2020 Bank Street Children’s Books of the Year: Agent Lion, 2023 Bank Street Children’s Books of the Year: Papa’s Home, 2023 Kirkus Reviews Best Book of the Year: Papa’s Home, 2025 Barnes & Noble Best Books 2025: Elvis & Romeo.

3 Fun Facts

1. We have a dog that resembles both a polar bear and a lion.
2. We ponder silly things like- why is the name for grapefruit, grapefruit?
3. We loves trees and bumblebees.

Franklin, Madeline Claire

Franklin, Madeline Claire

Madeline Claire Franklin holds an MFA in Creative Writing from the Vermont College of Fine Arts WCYA program, as well as a BA in Media Study and Anthropology from the University at Buffalo. When she is not writing strange fiction for young adults, she is probably attempting to dismantle the patriarchy and/or practicing witchcraft. She is a queer, Jewish, neurodiverse, invisibly disabled woman living in sin in Buffalo, NY, with her partner, two dogs, three cats, and two Roombas, in a little yellow house called Cluckleberry Farms. www.madelineclairefranklin.com

Awards

The Wilderness of Girls is a finalist for the 2025 YALSA William C. Morris Award for Best Debut Novel for Teens, as well as an Indie Next Pick, Amazon Editor’s Pick, a Blue Ribbons listee, and one of Barnes & Noble’s Best Books of 2024.

3 Fun Facts

1. I have been a practicing witch since I was 12 years old.
2. My grandfather invented pre-pasted wallpaper.
3. Joyce Carol Oates (who attended the same high school as me) once called me “the next JK Rowling” (before we knew JKR was not one to be looked up to).

Smiley, Jess Smart

JessSmartSmiley_BioPhoto2024_Screen – Jess Smiley

Smiley, Jess Smart

Jess Smart Smiley makes rad pictures with his bare hands and has helped thousands of children, teens, and adults around the world in making their own comics!

Jess is an award-winning, #1 bestselling author/illustrator of more than 20 books for young readers, including Let’s Make Comics and the What Happens Next series of comics readers can play.

Jess has created work for DisneyPixar, Dreamworks, Cartoon Network, Penguin Random House, Macmillan, Simon & Schuster, and is currently working through sketchbook #90, in which he is coming up with new characters, stories, and more! www.jess-smiley.com

Awards

#1 bestselling author/illustrator in 4 categories, 2023 recipient of the Krider Prize for Creativity, 2023 Guest of Honor at Life the Universe & Everything, named a “Top 40” by Utah Valley Magazine, recipient of “Arty” Award, and Guest at more than 100 around across the world.

3 Fun Facts

1. I was a background extra in a Hallmark Christmas movie.
2. I spent 3.5 years in bed with health problems.
3. I like to paint murals when I’m not making books.

Mahoney, Daniel J.

Mahoney, Daniel J.

Daniel J. Mahoney has been writing and illustrating books for young readers for over 25 years. He has written 6 picture books and has illustrated countless others. His latest picture books that he’s written and illustrated are We Don’t Eat Our Neighbors and My Cat is a Secret Agent. He grew up in Albany, NY and now resides on a cozy street in the country with his daughter Shay. Danieljmahoneyauthor.com

Awards

Bank Street Best Books and inclusion in the Society of Illustrators Original Art Show.

3 Fun Facts

1. I’m a fully trained Radiologic Technologist.
2. I sing to the bugs in my house.
3. I can break dance.

Kramer, Kara

Kramer, Kara

Kara Kramer is an illustrator and mixed media artist living in Brooklyn, NY. She has illustrated several picture books including Make Meatballs Sing: The Life and Art of Corita Kent, Erno Rubik and His Magic Cube, and is author/illustrator of the interactive picture book Tell Me a Lion Story. She explores many mediums and loves being in the creative process. www.karakramer.com

Awards

Best Stem Books K-12 2025
2024 Junior Library Guild Selection
2022 Bologna Ragazzi Award Amazing Bookshelf Selection
2022 ALA Notable Children’s Book

3 Fun Facts

1. I love to ski because it feels like I am drawing with my feet in the snow.
2. I stink at whistling.
3. Can’t choose a favorite color, in love with too many!