The Owl and the Pussycat

EDWARD LEAR (1812–1888) was an illustrator, natural history artist, and writer, though he is best known for his nonsense poems. His collection of poetry, A Book of Nonsense, was published in 1846 and helped to popularize the limerick, a humorous form of verse. His most famous poem, “The Owl and the Pussycat,” has been made into many picture books.

With more than 44 million books in print, Jan Brett is one of the nation’s foremost illustrators of children’s books.  As a child, she decided to be an illustrator and spent much of her time reading and drawing. As a student at the Boston Museum School, Jan spent many hours in the Museum of Fine Arts. Travel is also a constant inspiration, so with her husband, Joe Hearne, who was a member of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, she visits many different countries where she researches the architecture and costumes that appear in her work. Jan lives in a seacoast town in Massachusetts.