Book Festival

Tracey Baptiste is a New York Times bestselling author, best known for The Jumbies series, a middle grade fantasy based on Caribbean folklore. She writes fiction and nonfiction, graphic novels, and picture books through young adult. She does school visits around the world. You can find her at www.traceybaptiste.com.

Tahiya Cooper is a School Counselor in Elkton, Maryland. She has been an educator for 10 years. In 2019, she was named, Teacher of the Year at North East Elementary School. She prides herself on creating communities where students are kind, feel safe, and work hard. After launching a Kindness Club at her own school in 2018, Tahiya was inspired to write Kindness Week, her first children’s book and winner of three national awards. Tahiya has been a featured author across publications and media outlets including Kidliomag Magazine and local 6ABC Action News. 

Three-time Pura Belpré Award honoree Lulu Delacre has been writing and illustrating children's books since 1980. The New York Times Bestselling artist was born and raised in Puerto Rico to Argentinean parents. Delacre says her Latino heritage and her life experiences inform her work. Her many titles include Arroz con Leche: Popular Songs and Rhymes from Latin America, a Horn Book Fanfare Book in print for over 30 years. Her bilingual picture book ¡Olinguito, de la A a la Z! Descubriendo el bosque nublado; Olinguito, from A to Z! Unveiling the Cloud Forest and her story collection Us, in Progress: Short Stories About Young Latinos have received multiple starred reviews and awards. Among her latest works are the art of Turning Pages by Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor and Cool Green: Amazing, Remarkable Trees. Delacre has lectured internationally and served as a juror for the National Book Awards. She has exhibited at The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art, The Original Art Show at the Society of Illustrators in New York, the Museum of Art of Puerto Rico, and the Zimmerli Art Museum among other venues. Reading is Fundamental honored her with a Champion of Children’s Literacy Award. For more visit her at www.luludelacre.com.  

Heather Fox is an illustrator of stories for children. She likes to explore the use of color and shapes to create bright and whimsical doodles! When she isn't creating, you can probably find her enjoying a cup of coffee, walking around town, or chasing down her dog (Sir Hugo) who has stolen one of her socks. She lives in Lititz, Pennsylvania with her husband.

John Gallagher is the author/artist of the Max Meow graphic novel series. He is also the art director of the NWF’s Ranger Rick magazine, cofounder of Kids Love Comics (an organization that uses graphic novels to promote literacy), and leads workshops teaching kids how to create their own comics. John lives in Virginia with his wife and their three kids. 

Laura Gehl is the award-winning author of more than forty books for young readers, including One Big Pair of Underwear, I Got a Chicken for My Birthday, Except When They Don’t, My Pillow Keeps Moving, Delivery Bear, and the Peep and Egg series. Laura’s books have appeared on many state and national reading lists and have been translated into numerous languages. She lives in Maryland with her husband, four kids, and a large stash of dark chocolate. Visit Laura online at www.lauragehl.com.  

Megan Wagner Lloyd is the author of the kids’ graphic novels Allergic and Squished, co-created with illustrator Michelle Mee Nutter, and the Super Pancake kids’ graphic novel series, co-created with illustrator Abhi Alwar. Megan is also the author of the children’s novel Haven: A Small Cat's Big Adventure, the picture book Finding Wild, illustrated by Abigail Halpin, and several more picture books. She lives with her family in the Washington DC area. 

Lauren Magaziner is the author of The Mythics series, the Case Closed series, The Only Thing Worse Than Witches, Wizardmatch, and Pilfer Academy. She is originally from New Hope, Pennsylvania, and she currently lives in Philadelphia, where she writes full-time. Lauren is also a secret undercover international detective—but don’t blow her cover. You can visit Lauren at www.laurenmagaziner.com.  

Diana Murray is the author of over twenty children’s books, including the bestselling Unicorn Day series and Jr. Library Guild Selections like City Shapes and Goodnight, Veggies. Her poems appear in many anthologies and magazines, such as Highlights and High Five. Diana grew up in New York City and still lives nearby with her husband, two children, and a dancing dog. 

Tiffany Semmons is a wife, mom, and former child care director residing in North East, MD. She launched her first children's book titled, What Did We Miss? in April 2022 and pre-sold 800 copies of her highly anticipated debut title. Semmons launched her book on the Kickstarter platform raising 18K to self-publish it under her own publishing company and imprint, So Much Semmons. Semmons has been featured on the Himama Podcast (the #1 rated app for childcare), Studio 17 Live, the Cecil Whig, and the Multicultural Kid Blog. She is the 2023 recipient of the Black Kidlit Award for best indie children's book and claims the Mom of the Year Award whenever both of her kids finish their vegetables at dinner. 

An advocate for social emotion development, she creates literature that resonates with frustrated parents and their curious children, making each page a memorable learning experience for the entire family. Her first title is a hilarious bedtime story that will leave families enlightened, entertained, and educated. Learn more about this title and the author at www.somuchsemmons.com.

Kevin Sherry is not only the talented author/illustrator of I’m the Biggest Thing in the Ocean, Acorns Everywhere!, and Turtle Island, among many other books for kids, but he is also a chef, puppeteer, and cyclist. You can find him in his awesome fort in Baltimore, Maryland, working, playing, and always creating.

Jonathan Stutzman is a best-selling, award-winning author of books for kids. His books have been translated in over a dozen languages all over the world. He lives in a small town in Pennsylvania with his wife and their French bulldog Hugo.

Science Rocks! And so do Jennifer Swanson’s books. She is the award-winning author of over 45 nonfiction books for children. Using her background in science and history that she received from the U.S. Naval Academy, and her M.S. in Education, Jennifer excels at taking complex facts and making them accessible, compelling, and humorous for young readers. Jennifer's passion for science resonates in all her books but especially, Astronaut-Aquanaut: How Space Science and Sea Science Interact and Beastly Bionics which both received Florida Book Awards and NSTA BEST STEM book awards.  Her Save the Crash-test Dummies book received an NSTA BEST STEM Award and a Parent’s Choice GOLD Award. Jennifer has been a featured speaker at the Tucson Book Festival, National NSTA conferences, the Highlights Foundation, the World Science Festival, the Atlanta Science Festival, and the Library of Congress’ National Book Festival. You can find Jennifer through her website www.JenniferSwansonBooks.com.  

Nancy Viau is the author of ten books for kids ages 2-12. A former teacher and librarian, she’s a kid-at-heart who loves to present interactive assembly programs, writing workshops, and story times. Her 2022 book, Pruett and Soo, explores intergalactic friendships and how a simple change can change the world. Her nature-inspired rhyming titles for PreK-Grade 2 include Today is a Beach Day and First Snow. Nancy lives in New Jersey but travels wherever her frequent flyer miles take her. 

As a child Timothy Young always wondered who made the toys he played with, who wrote and illustrated the books he read and who made the cartoons he watched. He grew up to be someone who got to do all of them.  

Tim is the author/illustrator of 15 books including I Hate Picture Books!, The Angry Little Puffin, and the unusually titled untitled. He has designed toys, worked in animation and done other creative jobs. He has also illustrated books for other authors. 

Career highlights include working on the Penny cartoons for Pee-Wee’s Playhouse, building Muppets and sculpting the first Simpsons toys. He also created the pool toy The Chicken Fight Game. 

Tim has visited hundreds of schools and libraries and finds that doing presentations with students is one of the most fun and rewarding things he gets to do. 

Hyewon Yum is an author and illustrator of many picture books, including Lion Needs A Haircut and Grandpa Across the Ocean. Her Book, Saturday is swimming day is named a Charlotte Zolotow Award honor, and Mom, It's my first day of Kindergarten! received Ezra Jack Keats New Illustrator award. 

She also illustrated Not Little, Luli and the Language of Tea, and many more. 

She was born and grew up in Seoul, Korea. Now she lives in Brooklyn, New York with her family.