Erica Silverman is a children's author who has loved books since she was a child. She said that books inspired her daydreams and fantasies. She discovered the magic of libraries before she could read. Her grandmother took her to the 23rd Street branch of the New York Public Library in Manhattan. This is where she started appreciating the experience of picking out books to take home. Her love for reading lead her to writing. It was her grandmother who told her stories that fed her imagination. She drew on these memories when she wrote Gittel's Hands, Raisel's Riddle, When the Chickens Went on Strike and Sholom's Treasure. For fourteen years she taught English as a Second Language to adult… immigrants believing the acquisition of language is empowering. Her love of reading and writing has led her to yet another career. She earned her Masters in Library and Information Science and has become a librarian. She has always spent a great deal of time in libraries, both to research my books and to find books to read for pleasure. One of her favorites was an East European folk tale called 'The Turnip.' Many years later, the memory of this book inspired her to write Big Pumpkin which made The New York Times Best Seller List in 2013.
S. D. Schindler is the popular illustrator of many bestselling picture books, including How Santa Got His Job, Big Pumpkin, the Math Start title Betcha!, and the 2005 Newbery Honor Book Whittington.