Meet Alex London and Paul O. Zelinsky

Alex London is the acclaimed author of more than thirty books for children and teens. He’s the author of middle grade novels The Princess Protection Program, Search & Rescue, and the Battle Dragons series, which has appeared on numerous state reading lists. For teens, he’s the author of the cyberpunk duology Proxy, an ALA Best Books For Young Adults selection, and the epic fantasy series Black Wings Beating. He’s been a journalist and human rights researcher reporting from conflict zones and refugee camps, a young adult librarian with the New York Public Library, and a snorkel salesman.

Paul O. Zelinsky’s illustrations have won wide acclaim and many awards, including the Caldecott Medal for his retelling of Rapunzel, and three Caldecott Honors, for Hansel and Gretel, Rumpelstiltskin, and Swamp Angel. But the styles he uses for his books vary so widely that he’s often not recognized as the creator of the rollicking Wheels on the Bus, which has become a classic pop-up book and a favorite of young children around the world. His work also illustrates texts by such stellar writers as Beverly Cleary, Diana Wynne Jones, Lore Segal and Emily Jenkins.