Tony DiTerlizzi

Position
Premiere date: May 24, 2019
Bio/Description
This May, our guest is multiple award winning, and New York Times bestselling, author and illustrator Tony DiTerlizzi. For 20 years, DiTerlizzi has infused the children's book world with his brilliant imagination, endless creativity, and considerable artistic talent. His first series, The Spiderwick Chronicles (created in collaboration with Holly Black), details the adventures of the three Grace children, and their discoveries on the other-worldly estate inherited from their relative, Arthur Spiderwick. Their much-loved adventures resulted in a spin-off series, Beyond the Spiderwick Chronicles, several companion books, and a feature film.
 
DiTerlizzi's second series, the WondLa trilogy, is an epic science fiction fantasy. It centers around human girl Eva Nine as she emerges into a world distantly removed from planet Earth - a world on the brink of an alien civil war and global reawakening. The books are illuminated with DiTerlizzi's gorgeous illustrations of air ships, alien species, battle scenes, and beautiful moments. It's simply amazing.
 
In addition to his chapter books, DiTerlizzi has produced a number of picture books, including The Spider and the Fly, which won a Caldecott honor in 2003, The Story of Diva and Flea with Mo Willems, and The Adventures of Luke Skywalker, Jedi Knight, with Lucasfilm. In 2018, the Norman Rockwell Museum hosted a 20 year retrospective on DiTerlizzi's work titled "Never Abandon Imagination." He has been featured in Time magazine, USA Today, and a guest on CNN, PBS, NPR, BBC and The Today Show.