LibGuides: Children's Literature and Librarianship: Authors & Illustrators

Authors & Illustrators in Library Databases

Below is a selection of the library's online resources that provide background information on authors and illustrators. And remember, if you can't find what you need on this page, Help! is only a click away!

Something About the Author Online
This resource provides detailed and reliable information about the writers and illustrators of books for children and teens. In addition to providing biographical and bibliographical information about established writers and illustrators, Something About the Author is often the only available authoritative source on emerging authors and artists and includes more than 20,000 entries that provide rich biographical and bibliographic detail about authors and illustrators of books for children and teens. It also includes autobiographical essays.

Continuum Encyclopedia of Children's Literature
This e-book includes 1,200 biographical-critical entries and nearly 100 topical articles all written by experts in the field. The work covers 150 years of children's literature in many countries: The United States, Great Britain, Canada, continental Europe, Australia, New Zealand, Africa, and Asia.
The Cambridge Guide to Children's Books in English
This e-book provides a critical and appreciative overview of English-language children's books from around the world.
Women Writers of Children's LIterature
This e-book covers 200 of the most important women writers of English. It groups authors culturally and by genre, from 18th-century diarists to new writers of experimental prose. Each volume covers approximately 15 authors and includes a concise biography, a selection of critical extracts, and a complete and up-to-date bibliography of the author's publications.

Authors & Illustrators in Library Books

Print reference book are great sources of information about the authors and illustrators of children's literature. Below is a sample of some of the best print resources in the Simmons Library. If you don't have access to the Simmons Library, you can use WorldCat to find a copy in a library near you!

International Companion Encyclopedia of Children's Literature
This work features long, in-depth entries on general topics like "psychoanalytical criticism," "children's book design" and much more.
Major Authors and Illustrators for Children and Young Adults
Call Number: Reference PN451 .M37 2002
Information on the significant authors and illustrators from around the world, encompassing the entire spectrum of children's and young adult literature.
St. James Guide to Children's Writers
English-language writers of children's fiction, non-fiction, poetry, and drama are explored in this reference in detail.
The Continuum Encyclopedia of Young Adult Literature
Call Number: Reference PN1008.5 .C67 2005
The only reference guide to YA literature in any language.
The Oxford Encyclopedia of Children's Literature
Offers an international focus and includes a list of entries, including authors, characters and country information, in relation to children's titles.
Yesterday's Authors of Books for Children
Call Number: Reference PN451 .Y4
Published in 1977, this two volume resource has honest "life sketch" information about timeless children's authors and illustrators born in the late 1700s and thereafter, and who have died since 1960.

Authors & Illustrators on the Web

Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators
The Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI) is an international professional organisation for writers and illustrators of children's literature. It was founded in the US in 1971 by Lin Oliver and Stephen Mooser and is now the largest children's writing organization in the world. Browse the Illustrator Gallery to see online images from featured illustrators.
Scholastic: Authors & Illustrators
This resource includes biographies, interviews, author and study resources for children's book authors and illustrators.
Children's Literature: Meet Authors/Illustrators
Includes biographical information, book reviews and much more on authors and illustrators of children's literature.
UK Children's Books - Directory of Authors & Illustrators
This site provides links to the individual websites of UK-based authors and illustrators.
Reading Rockets: Video Interviews with Top Children's Book Authors and Illustrators
Watch Reading Rockets' exclusive video interviews with top children's book authors and illustrators. You'll discover if Chris Van Allsburg is really as spooky as his books, where Jon Scieszka gets his wacky ideas, and why Patricia Polacco's warm family tales seem so real.
Children's Book Authors and Illustrators on the Web
The links to these children's book authors and illustrators are varied. Some are their official websites, when available. Others are fan sites, publisher sites, biographies, autobiographies, or interviews.

Want to hear authors reading from or talking about their work? Use the custom search box below to search YouTube for your favorite authors and illustrators.