American Anthem

Gene Scheer is a two-time Grammy-nominated songwriter and librettist. His work has been featured at many leading opera companies across the country, including the Metropolitan Opera in New York and the San Francisco, Santa Fe, and Dallas Operas. He has also written songs for such illustrious singers as Denyce Graves, Renée Fleming, Joyce DiDonato, Patti LuPone, and Nathan Gunn. Gene was inspired to write “American Anthem” in 1998 and has been performed for Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush and at the memorial service for Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. A version of the song, sung by Norah Jones, was featured in Ken Burns’s Emmy Award-winning World War II documentary for PBS entitled The War. Gene lives in Connecticut with his wife, Kristina.

Fahmida Azim has illustrated many books, including her award-winning debut, Muslim Women Are Everything. Fahmida lives and creates in Seattle, Washington.

Elizabeth Baddeley is the illustrator of many books, including the New York Times bestselling I Dissent. Elizabeth lives in Kansas City, Missouri, with her husband, young son, and assortment of furry friends.

Matt Faulkner has crafted the words and pictures for over forty books for children. Matt lives with his wife, author Kristen Remenar, and their kids and cat in Michigan.

Michelle Lee is a Korean-American illustrator from Los Angeles whose work includes My Love for You Is Always and Chloe’s Lunar New Year. She studied printmaking and biology at UC Berkeley and earned her MS in education at the University of Pennsylvania while working as a K-8 science teacher. When not illustrating picture books, Michelle works as a freelance illustrator/designer and maintains a children’s clothing line she co-founded. Michelle finds inspiration in nature, her family, and memories from childhood. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband.

Rafael López is an internationally recognized artist who has illustrated numerous acclaimed picture books, including Just Ask! Be Different, Be Brave, Be You, Dancing Hands: How Teresa Carreño Played the Piano for President Lincoln, and The Day You Begin, among others. He won Pura Belpré medals for Drum Dream Girl and Book Fiesta, and has also received three Pura Belpré honors, two Américas Book Awards, and the 2017 Tomás Rivera Children’s Book Award and Society of Illustrators Original Art Silver Medal. His work has been featured in Communication Arts, American Illustration Annual, Graphic Design USA and Huffington Post. He’s a founder of San Diego’s Urban Art Trail movement, created seven US Postal Stamps, and created official posters for the ’08 and ’12 Obama-Biden campaigns. He lives in San Diego, California, and San Miguel de Allende, Mexico.

Veronica Miller Jamison is an illustrator and surface pattern designer living in Philadelphia. Veronica has created art and patterns for Hallmark, Essence magazine, and Lilly Pulitzer. She is the illustrator of A Computer Called Katherine and This Is a School.

Christine Almeda is a Filipino-American freelance illustrator and character designer from New Jersey. She has a love for children’s books and has worked on various chapter books.

Edel Rodriguez was born in Havana, Cuba, and raised in El Gabriel. Social justice, poster art, and Western advertising are all aspects of his life that continue to inform his work.

James McMullan, one of America’s foremost illustrators, is best known for his many acclaimed theater posters for Lincoln Center. His 1976 New York magazine cover and interior illustrations inspired the imagery of the film Saturday Night Fever. He is the author of four books and teaches at the School of Visual Arts in New York City, where he lives

Laura McGee Kvasnosky grew up in Sonora, California. She is the award-winning creator of more than twenty books for children. Kvasnosky illustrated: Little Wolf’s First Howling, Squeak!, and Ocean Lullaby.

Kate Harvey McGee grew up in Sonora, California. Kate is a noted pastel painter. She illustrated: Little Wolf’s First Howling, Squeak!, and Ocean Lullaby.

London Ladd has illustrated numerous critically acclaimed children’s books. Each of his works is steeped in intensity and emotion, a reflection of the artist himself.

Jacqueline Alcantara is the award-winning and critically acclaimed illustrator of The Field, Freedom Soup, Jump at the Sun, and Your Mama. Her books have been listed as best books of the year by multiple trade outlets, named to the Kids’ IndieNext list, and received multiple starred reviews.