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Born on July 13th, Marcia Brown was the daughter of a minister—one of three minister’s daughters, growing up during the Great Depression. She was interested in medical school, but there wasn’t enough money. Instead, she studied at New York State College for Teachers, majoring in English and drama. She taught high school for three years, but then she moved to New York City to pursue her dream of writing and illustrating children’s books. She never took an art class, but during summers she worked at a resort hotel in Woodstock and there she studied with Judson Smith. Her first book was The Little Carousel (1946) and her second book was Stone Soup (1947), now considered to be a children’s literature classic. She won her first Caldecott medal in 1954 when her translation of Cinderella was given top honors by the committee. Once a Mouse (1961) and Shadow (1982) received Brown’s other two Caldecott medals, and she has been graced with six more Caldecott Honors. At this point, no other illustrator has equaled her record. Marcia Brown now lives on the West Coast where she is studying Chinese art.