Jan Brett (born December 1, 1949) is an American illustrator and author of children's picture books. Her titles include The Mitten, The Hat, and Gingerbread Baby as well as retelling traditional stories such as the Gingerbread Man and Goldilocks.
Life
Brett was born and still lives in Massachusetts. She studied at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.
On August 18, 1980 Jan Brett married bassist Joseph Hearne, a member of the Boston Symphony Orchestra.
Works
Illustrated
Source:
- Happy Birthday, Dear Duck (1988) by Eve Bunting
- Mother's Day Mice (1986) by Eve Bunting
- Scary, Scary Halloween (1986) by Eve Bunting
- Noelle of the Nutcracker (1988) by Pamela Jane
Written & Illustrated
Source:
Awards
Brett's works have been nominated for and won multiple awards over the years.
- 1990: Wild Christmas Reindeer was featured on the New York Times Bestseller list.
- 1991: The Mitten won the Kentucky Bluegrass Award. Berlioz the Bear was chosen for Newsweek Magazine Best Children's Book and New Yorker Magazine Best Children's Books.
- 1994: Trouble with Trolls won the Black-Eyed Susan Book award from the Maryland Library Association.
- 1995: Trouble with Trolls is honored as a Little Bluestem picture book and the Nebraska Golden Sower Award from the Nebraska Library Association.
- 1998: The Hat wins the American Booksellers Association's Book of the Year Award.
- 1999: The Hat wins Buckeye Children's & Teen Book Award. Gingerbread Baby was chosen as one of the Best Children's Books of the Year by Bank Street College Center for Children's Literature's Children's Book Committee.
- 2001: Gingerbread Baby wins one of the Triple Crown Awards, (specifically the Children's Gallery Award) from the National Christian School Association.
- 2003: Daisy Comes Home wins National Council for Social Studies & Children's Book Council's Notable Social Studies Trade Book for Young People for the cultural diversity present in her book.
- 2008: The Three Snow Bears helps Brett make it as a finalist for the Children's Favorites Awards' and the Kids' Book Choice Awards' Illustrator of the Year.
- 2010: The 3 Little Dassies wins the Chicago Public Library Best of the Best: Kids' Award in the Folk and Fairy Tales and Poetry division. The Easter Egg wins Oppenheim Toy Portfolio's Gold Book Award.
- 2013: Mossy wins Best Children's Books of the Year for the Five to Nine category by Bank Street College Center for Children's Literature's Children's Book Committee.
- 2014: Brett's adaptation of The Night Before Christmas wins the Libris Award's Children's Picture Book of the Year.
- 2019: The Snowy Nap is the third book of Brett's to win the Best Children's Books of the Year by the Bank Street College Center for Children's Literature's Children's Book Committee.
- 2021: Cozy wins two awards: the Massachusetts Book Award and the Best Children's Books of the Year by the Bank Street College Center for Children's Literature's Children's Book Committee. Brett was awarded the Regina Medal from the Catholic Library Association.
Reception
Many of Brett's books have been positively received by libraries and parents alike.
In May 2023 at the Fenimore Art Museum in Cooperstown, New York, an exhibition was hosted dedicated to Brett's Illustrations.
References
External links
- Official website
- Brett biography at Scholastic Teachers – with transcript of interview by students and teachers
- Jan Brett's Page on Library Thing – includes works, reviews, and awards
- Jan Brett at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database
- Jan Brett at Library of Congress, with 66 library catalog records
- Jan Brett Papers, Special Collections at The University of Southern Mississippi (de Grummond Children's Literature Collection)
