Tessa Strickland

Kate DePalma was born and raised outside Nashville, TN, USA. As Senior Editor at Barefoot Books, she has helped develop dozens of picture books, as well as authoring her own, including those published under her pseudonym, Sunny Scribens. She holds an M.A. in Classics from the University of Texas and is also a published poet and scholar. Kate lives with her husband and daughter in Pennsylvania, USA.

Tessa Strickland was brought up in rural north England, the second of five children. She spent her childhood amid hens, horses and haystacks, and could often be found immersed in books or exploring the local woods and fields on her pony. A succession of interesting guests from around the world passed through her parents' house, kindling a lasting interest in other cultures. Tessa co-founded Barefoot Books with Nancy Traversy in the early 1990s, and has gone on to create many highly acclaimed children's books, including the numerous books she has written under her pseudonym, Stella Blackstone. She is also mother to three adult children, a yoga practitioner and a licensed psychotherapist. Tessa now lives and works in Somerset, southwest England.

David Dean is a full-time illustrator who is enjoying his mission of traveling the world from the comfort of his own studio. Known for his exotic and colorful work, David works in a room surrounded by books from many different cultures, from which he finds inspiration. In his spare time, David enjoys walking the countryside near his house in Cheshire, England, taking photographs of the things he sees.