Meet the Author & Illustrator

Ali Gilkeson is a performer, author, and speaker. She has traveled the world playing music and sharing stories with the band Rend Collective. She is a mother of three kids, raising them all on the road since six weeks of age. Ali grew up in Northern Ireland in a time of conflict and uncertainty, a childhood spent always looking over her shoulder but also learning to laugh in the middle of the chaos. Gifted as a communicator, she started traveling around Ireland as a speaker in her early twenties, taking any chance she could to encourage and embolden the young people she met. Ali loves to write and share stories that spark imagination, kindle questions, and most importantly, make people laugh.

Lee Wildish has been interested in illustration and art from a young age. As soon as he left university he started as a graphic designer for an advertising agency before venturing into greeting cards, and then illustrating for children’s books. Nature and people are the biggest influence in his work and he tries to get as much character and expression as possible into each piece.