Colleen Paeff

Award-winning author Colleen Paeff studied set design for theater at California State University, Fullerton before becoming a bookseller, preschool teacher, and newspaper columnist. (She never did become a set designer!) Eventually, she figured out how to combine books, kids, and writing into one career – as a children’s book author. Her debut picture book, "The Great Stink: How Joseph Bazalgette Solved London’s Poop Pollution Problem" (illustrated by Nancy Carpenter), won numerous awards, including a Robert F. Sibert Honor. Her next book, "Firefly Song: Lynn Frierson Faust and the Great Smoky Mountain Discovery" (illustrated by Ji-Hyuk Kim), appeared on best books of the year lists from the New York Public Library, Kirkus Reviews, BookList, among others. Colleen lives in Los Angeles, CA.