About Deborah
Deborah Underwood grew up in Walla Walla, Washington. Her dad taught math, her mom taught English, and her sister is a computer genius. (Deborah is not a computer genius.) Deborah loved reading when she was a kid. She read everywhere, including the bathtub. This was not a good idea, because she kept dropping her favorite books in the water.
Now Deborah lives in Northern California. She loves all animals, especially her kitty Bella, and singing, and sitting in her garden, and eating vegan German chocolate cake. She also loves taking photos of birds and other animals.
She does not like cilantro, loud noises, or vacuuming. (Bella doesn’t like any of those, either.)
Also About Deborah
Deborah Underwood is the author of New York Times bestsellers The Quiet Book, The Loud Book (both illustrated by Renata Liwska), and Here Comes the Easter Cat (illustrated by Claudia Rueda).
Outside In, illustrated by Cindy Derby, won a Caldecott Honor for its illustrations and Le Prix Philosophia Jeunesse Award. The Man Who Didn’t Like Animals, illustrated by LeUyen Pham, was honored with the California Independent Booksellers Alliance’s Golden Poppy Award, the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators’ Golden Kite Award for Picture Book Text, and SCBWI’s Crystal Kite Award for the California/Hawaii region. It was also shortlisted for the Northern California Book Award.
Deborah’s other awards and honors include the Bill Martin, Jr. Picture Book Award (Every Little Letter), the Maryland Blue Crab Young Reader Award for Transitional Fiction (Pirate Mom), the Lupine Honor Award (A Balloon for Isabel), the Sakura Medal from the International Schools of Japan (The Panda Problem), the Golden Duck Award for Excellence in Science Fiction (Interstellar Cinderella), the Washington State Book Award for Early Readers (Here Comes the Tooth Fairy Cat), an E.B. White Read Aloud Honor and SCBWI’s Crystal Kite Award (The Quiet Book), and the Moonbeam Children’s Book Gold Award for Environmental Issues (101 Ways to Save the Planet). She was named the 2022 Notable Wisconsin Children’s Author.