Jessica Gibson – Illustratör

Lyrical, inspiring, and affecting text paired with bright, appealing illustrations make Ready to Fly perfect for aspiring ballerinas everywhere who are ready to leap and to spread their wings!Ready to Fly is the true story of Sylvia Townsend, an African American girl who falls in love with ballet after seeing Swan Lake on TV. This nonfiction picture book is an excellent choice to share at home or in the classroom. Although there aren’t many ballet schools that will accept a girl like Sylvia in the 1950s, her local bookmobile provides another possibility. A librarian helps Sylvia find a book about ballet and the determined seven-year-old, with the help of her new books, starts teaching herself the basics of classical ballet.Soon Sylvia learns how to fly—how to dance—and how to dare to dream.Includes a foreword from Sylvia Townsend, a brief history of the bookmobile, an author’s note, and a further reading list.

Lyrical, inspiring, and affecting text paired with bright, appealing illustrations make Ready to Fly perfect for aspiring ballerinas everywhere who are ready to leap and to spread their wings!Ready to Fly is the true story of Sylvia Townsend, an African American girl who falls in love with ballet after seeing Swan Lake on TV. This nonfiction picture book is an excellent choice to share at home or in the classroom. Although there aren’t many ballet schools that will accept a girl like Sylvia in the 1950s, her local bookmobile provides another possibility. A librarian helps Sylvia find a book about ballet and the determined seven-year-old, with the help of her new books, starts teaching herself the basics of classical ballet.Soon Sylvia learns how to fly—how to dance—and how to dare to dream.Includes a foreword from Sylvia Townsend, a brief history of the bookmobile, an author’s note, and a further reading list.

From beloved comedian, actress, and New York Times bestselling author Tiffany Haddish comes Layla, the Last Black Unicorn, a hilarious, original picture book tale about a lovable but awkward unicorn who learns why her uniqueness is her biggest strength.It’s not easy to fit in when you stand out. When Layla arrives for her first day of school at Unicornia, the school for unicorns, she realizes that she’s not like the other kids there. They’re all pastel colors and know the rules to Horn Ball and none of them come from the Woods like Layla does. Try as she might to make friends, Layla’s just . . . different. But when her class gets lost during a field trip to the Fiddle Dee Deep Forest, it’s up to Layla to step up and save the day.Layla, the Last Black Unicorn is a hilariously heartwarming picture book about self-acceptance, self-esteem, and standing up for standing out by New York Times bestselling author, Grammy Award-winning comedian, and actress Tiffany Haddish and Jerdine Nolen, author of the Coretta Scott King Honor Book Thunder Rose.

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • From Grammy-winning pop star Ciara and Super Bowl champion quarterback Russell Wilson comes a picture book to inspire young readers to see the value in themselves, be brave, and go after their biggest dreams!  Why not you? Amazing you! You’re a winner! You’re so strong! You are perfect and important—you and all your gifts belong!  We all have big dreams! Sometimes it’s hard to imagine our big dreams coming true. But what if someone saw all the amazing and spectacular parts of us—our winning smiles, our fancy feet, our warm hearts—and asked, “Why not you?”  Whether it’s becoming a football player or a pop star or the president or a scientist: Why not you?  In this picture book debut, superstars Ciara and Russell Wilson encourage readers to see themselves achieving their dreams, no matter how outrageous they may seem. It’s a lyrical celebration of self-esteem, perseverance, and daring to shoot for the stars.

Model and mother to twin boys, Porsche Thomas presents this Step 2 leveled reader about sibling differences and the importance of unconditional love. Perfect for children recognizing familiar words while sounding out new ones with help.All twins look and act the same, right?WRONG!August and Berlin are twins but they couldn't be more different. From their personalities, to their heights, to the way they like to play, these twins are definitely not the same. So, they never get along, right? WRONG AGAIN!For all their differences, they're a lot alike, too. Most importantly, they know that no matter how much they do or don't have in common, they make a perfect pair. Twin mom, model, and actress Porsche Thomas tells a story from the heart that's inspired by her own experience watching two twin boys grow up.Step 2 readers use basic vocabulary and short sentences to tell simple stories. They are perfect for children who recognize familiar words and can sound out new words with help.

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • From Grammy-winning pop star Ciara and Super Bowl champ Russell Wilson comes a story to inspire young readers to see value in themselves, be brave, and go after their biggest dreams—now as a board book! Why not you? Amazing you! You’re a winner! You’re so strong! You are perfect and important—you and all your gifts belong!We all have big dreams! Sometimes it’s hard to imagine our big dreams coming true. But what if someone saw all the amazing and spectacular parts of us—our winning smiles, our fancy feet, our warm hearts—and asked, “Why not you?”Whether it’s becoming a football player or a pop star or the president or a scientist: Why not you?In this new, more durable format—perfect for babies and toddlers— superstars Ciara and Russell Wilson encourage little ones to achieve their dreams, no matter how outrageous they may seem. It’s a lyrical celebration of self-esteem, perseverance, and daring to shoot for the stars.

What does it mean to be a good neighbor? From Central Park to Broadway to Times Square, Walter the French Bulldog is on a mission of kindness in this hilarious dog adventure story from ABC's Good Morning America's Eva Pilgrim.Walter's heart is full of kindness, but this little dog's efforts to help his neighbors don't go as planned. Journalist Eva Pilgrim's charming narrative and Jessica Gibson's vibrant illustrations make Walter Does His Best a wonderful way to introduce kids ages 4-8 to new adventures in kindness.This beautiful jacketed hardcoverencourages children to look for opportunities to be kindaffirms that everyone makes mistakesappeals to kids' enjoyment of animalscelebrates authors of colorcan be read aloud for story time or enjoyed as an independent readintroduces kids to New York City landmarks in a fun, colorful way!Join Walter for a jaunt through Central Park, inside a Broadway theater, onto subway cars, through the Rockefeller Center gardens, and all the way to Coney Island as he tries his very, messy best to be a good dog--and learns that what matters most is the love you share with others every day.

A retelling of the classic nursery rhyme. Join the charming woodland animals as a twinkly star guides them home to bed.

AN INTERACTIVE, SWING-ALONG PICTURE BOOK—WITH 12 SOUND CHIPS! Are you ready to swing? Discover the wonders of jazz: How to get in the groove, what it means to play a solo, and the joy of singing along in a call-and-response. In this interactive swing-along picture book with 12 sound chips, you’ll hear the instruments of jazz—the rhythm section with its banjo, drums, and tuba, and the leads, like the clarinet, trumpet, and trombone. And you’ll hear singers scat, improvising melodies with nonsense syllables like be-bop and doo-we-ah! Along the way, you’ll learn how this unique African American art form started in New Orleans, and how jazz changed over time as innovative musicians like King Oliver, Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, and Billie Holiday added their own ideas to it. Press the buttons to hear the band, the rhythms, and the singer calling out: “OH WHEN THE SAINTS—oh when the saints…”

From the award-winning author of Kitten and the Night Watchman comes a tender and relatable picture book about what makes a pet truly special.Evie’s pet is Sasha the cat. Sasha is the best pet ever. But Jenny has a friendly ferret. Garrett has cuddly guinea pigs. And David has a squawking parrot. Suddenly, to Evie, Sasha seems plain. And that makes Evie wonder…could there be a better pet for her? Until she realizes that all pets are special if you love them.

A heart-warming journey of learning to love the hair you have, and the person you are.The journey to love your hair can be a long, tangly one.It's not always easy to love your curls and coils but this joyful book, gives children a BOOST on the journey to self-love.Follow Kyra as she shares her thoughts and feelings about her amazing Afro hair, and the facts she learns about all kinds of hair types and styles. After a trip to the hairdresser's, Kyra's school friends have lots of questions for her, and she has lots for them too.Learn about straight hair, coily hair, red hair, cornrows, French braids and more in this celebration of all things HAIR.