Susan Jeffers was born on October 7th. She studied at Pratt Institute where she was allowed to do her favorite things: draw, read, paint, sculpt, and study psychology. She learned about making books while working at three publishing houses. Working most often in pen, ink, and wash, Ms. Jeffers says, "The most difficult part for me is telling the story with the right relationships of composition and character. This requires many, many little drawings and combinations until the drawing says what you want it to. Some drawings never do." Ms. Jeffers and her husband, a conservation officer, live in Westchester County, New York. Jeffers, whose first book was published in 1973, has been honored with a Caldecott Honor Award and was the first American illustrator to be given the Golden Apple Award by the Biennale of Illustrators, Bratislava. Both awards were presented for Three Jovial Huntsmen (1974).
