BIO

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Jen Betton is a children’s book author-illustrator, art professor, and transatlantic tree-climber. Her picture books include HEDGEHOG NEEDS A HUG, published with Putnam (a Scholastic Book Fair selection, winner of Pennsylvania's Keystone to Reading Book Award, finalist for Mississippi’s Magnolia Award) and TWILIGHT CHANT, written by Holly Thompson, published with Clarion (a NCTE Notable Book).

Jen grew up with 5 dogs, 6 cats, 2 rabbits, 4 hamsters, 2 rats, 2 anole lizards who escaped almost immediately, and several hundred fish. The child of a hippie and a surfer, her family was semi-nomadic: she lived in 8 different states and the island of Montserrat in the Caribbean, which is small enough that pretty much everyone knew her name. She grew up with a love for animals, a taste for adventure, and a firm understanding of the importance of friends – all of which are themes in her work! 


During her travels, she studied both biology and literature before obtaining a BFA in Painting from the University of Central Florida, and an MFA in Illustration from Syracuse University. She is an art teacher for elementary through college kids and taught illustration and animation for many years (which gave her a great appreciation for cinematic shot design in narrative storytelling).

She loves painting foxes, cute rodents, and anything with interesting lighting, especially night scenes. Currently, her wandering feet are resting in Dallas, TX, accompanied by 2 munchkins, 2 cats, 50 or so fish and an overabundance of shrimp.