Jenny Andrus
As a child, Jenny and her best friend would act out scenes from their favorite books, including leaving notes for each other in a hollowed-out tree à la Jennifer, Hecate, MacBeth, William McKinley, and Me, Elizabeth by E.L. Konigsburg. As an adult, she tried out several careers before landing the perfect one: A K-8 school librarian. Matching kids to books was the very best part of the job. With classes in and out of the library all day, she sought out the most engaging picture books to read aloud. Jenny’s own writing style is informed by the books her students loved, the ones that turned even reluctant readers into readers. Jenny’s first picture book, about her chess-playing WWII refugee grandmother, will be published in 2025 by Neal Porter Books. When she’s not writing, Jenny loves spending time with her grown children and being outdoors. Her family’s favorite place is on California’s North Coast, where a driftwood deer built long ago by her parents still stands. He’s the subject of her newest book.