A bi-weekly feature profiling the talented authors and illustrators who bring children’s books to life.

As a child, Barney Saltzberg longed to fit in—a theme that pervades his picture books today. He remembers asking his parents for a Sting-Ray bike with a banana seat, but they purchased an Italian folding bike instead. His friends watched the Man from U.N.C.L.E. on TV and sported black shirts, black pants, and black pointy shoes like the characters, Napoleon Solo and Illya Kuryakin. Unfortunately for Saltzberg, his parents were more practical. “My dad owned a shoe store and said round-toed shoe are better for your feet…My mother made me wear a red sweater because it was easy to find me after school. I wanted to wear black like everyone else.” More…