David Ezra Stein is an American author and illustrator of children's books. He is best known for his '' Interrupting Chicken'' series, which was adapted into an

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in 2022. The first book of the series has been named a

Caldecott Honor The Randolph Caldecott Medal, frequently shortened to just the Caldecott, annually recognizes the preceding year's "most distinguished American picture book for children". It is awarded to the illustrator by the Association for Library Service ...

book.

Biography

Stein was born in

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

, New York. His father was a cartographer, and his mother was a painter and editor, both of which inspired him as an artist. He attended the

Parsons School of Design Parsons School of Design, known colloquially as Parsons, is a private art and design college located in the Greenwich Village neighborhood of New York City. Founded in 1896 after a group of progressive artists broke away from established Manhatt ...

, where he majored in editorial illustration. While studying, he took a year off, during which he lived in

Cape Cod Cape Cod is a peninsula extending into the Atlantic Ocean from the southeastern corner of mainland Massachusetts, in the northeastern United States. Its historic, maritime character and ample beaches attract heavy tourism during the summer mont ...

and explored puppetry. Stein's books have been translated in Chinese, Korean, Japanese, Spanish, Catalan, Dutch, French, and Finnish, and his artwork has appeared in ''

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'' and ''

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'', among other major publications. Stein has a wife and two children. They live in

Kew Gardens, Queens Kew Gardens is a neighborhood in the central area of the New York City borough of Queens. Kew Gardens is bounded to the north by the Union Turnpike and the Jackie Robinson Parkway (formerly the Interboro Parkway), to the east by the Van Wyck Exp ...

Awards and honors

Six of Stein's books are Junior Library Guild selections: ''Leaves'' (2007), ''Interrupting Chicken'' (2010), ''Dinosaur Kisses'' (2013), ''Ol’ Mama Squirrel'' (2013), ''Honey'' (2018), and ''The Worm Family Has Its Picture Taken'' (2021). ''Leaves'' was named one of the best picture books of the year by ''

Kirkus Reviews ''Kirkus Reviews'' (or ''Kirkus Media'') is an American book review magazine founded in 1933 by Virginia Kirkus (1893–1980). The magazine is headquartered in New York City. ''Kirkus Reviews'' confers the annual Kirkus Prize to authors of fic ...

'', ''

Publishers Weekly ''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of B ...

'', and ''

School Library Journal ''School Library Journal'' (''SLJ'') is an American monthly magazine containing reviews and other articles for school librarians, media specialists, and public librarians who work with young people. Articles cover a wide variety of topics, with ...

''. In 2011, Bank Street College of Education included ''Interrupting Chicken'' on their list of the best children's books for ages 5–9.

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named ''Ol' Mama Squirrel'' one of the best books of 2013 for ages 3–5. In 2022, '' The Horn Book Magazine'' named ''Don't Worry, Murray'' one of the best picture books of the year.

Publications

Standalone books

* ''Leaves'' ( G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers, 2007, ) * ''Cowboy Ned & Andy'' ( Paula Wiseman Books, 2006, ) * ''Monster Hug!'' (G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers, 2006, ) * ''Ned's New Friend'' (Paula Wiseman Books, 2007, ) * ''The Nice Book'' (G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers, 2008, ) * ''Pouch!'' (G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers, 2009, ) * ''Love, Mouserella'' ( Nancy Paulsen Books, 2011, ) * ''Because Amelia Smiled'' ( Candlewick Press, 2012, ) * ''Dinosaur Kisses'' (Candlewick Press, 2013, ) * ''Ol' Mama Squirrel'' (Nancy Paulsen Books, 2013, ) * ''I'm My Own Dog'' (Candlewick Press, 2014, ) * ''Tad and Dad'' (Nancy Paulsen Books, 2015, ) * ''Ice Boy'' (Candlewick Press, 2017, ) * ''Honey'' (Nancy Paulsen Books, 2018, ) * ''Hush, Little Bunny'' (

Balzer + Bray HarperCollins Publishers LLC is one of the Big Five English-language publishing companies, alongside Penguin Random House, Simon & Schuster, Hachette, and Macmillan. The company is headquartered in New York City and is a subsidiary of News Co ...

, 2019, ) * ''Don't Worry, Murray'' ( Harperteen, 2022, ) * ''Beaky Barnes: Egg on the Loose'' (

Penguin Workshop Penguin Group is a British trade book publisher and part of Penguin Random House, which is owned by the German media conglomerate Bertelsmann. The new company was created by a merger that was finalised on 1 July 2013, with Bertelsmann initially ...

, 2023, )

''Interrupting Chicken'' series

* '' Interrupting Chicken'' ( Candlewick Press, 2010, ) * ''Interrupting Chicken and the Elephant of Surprise'' (Candlewick Press, 2018, ) * ''Interrupting Chicken: Cookies for Breakfast'' (Candlewick Press, 2021, )

As illustrator only

* ''The Worm Family Has Its Picture Taken'', with Jennifer Frank ( Anne Schwartz Books, 2021, )

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Stein, David Ezra American children's book illustrators Year of birth missing (living people) American children's writers Writers from New York City Living people Caldecott Honor winners Writers who illustrated their own writing Parsons School of Design alumni