Joanna lives in the Bay Area, California with her two goofball children. Their nicknames are Boogie (short for Booger) and Stinkbomb, which tells you all you need to know about them and her. When she’s not at home stepping on LEGOs and chasing around a five year-old who refuses to put on her clothes, she is at school doing big, important things like chasing around teenagers who refuse to go to class.

In the summer, you can find her in a muumuu and flip-flops planning her next adventure and eating buckets of Marianne’s 1020 ice cream. In the winter, she lives in baggy sweats and fuzzy socks, and turns into a tradition overlord who is determined to pack every possible holiday activity into not enough time. This is how she became a writer of children’s books; she was hunting for holiday books with diverse characters for her newborn, and realized there weren’t very many. She started writing because she believes all kids need to see themselves and others in books.

Joanna straight up collapsed in her driveway while yelling SHUT UP! SHUT UP! at her editor (which is quite rude) when said editor called to share the news that her debut picture book, Eyes that Kiss in the Corners was an instant New York Times bestseller. She wasn’t quite as rude the second time she got a call like this and would really love a third and fourth and fifth opportunity with these kinds of calls - thank you for your support in this matter.

If she’s not writing, educator-ing, or mommying, she is most likely searching for the perfect chocolate chip cookie, reading books by diverse creators, or tromping through nature on epic outdoor adventures. Keep your eyes open for more books to come!