Diane Stanley
Biography
Diane Stanley
Diane Stanley is the author and illustrator of more than fifty books for children, noted especially for her series of picture book biographies. Shaka, King of the Zulus was named a New York Times Best Illustrated Book; Leonardo da Vinci received the Orbis Pictus Award for Outstanding Nonfiction from the National Council for Teachers of English. Ten of her books have been honored as “Notable Books” by the American Library Association and she has twice received both the Boston Globe/Hornbook Award and the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators’ Golden Kite Award. She was the recipient of the Washington Post/Children’s Book Guild Award for Nonfiction for the body of her work. Illustrations from Petrosinella were shown at the National Museum of Women in the Arts.
In addition to her nonfiction titles, Diane has written and illustrated numerous picture books, including The Giant and the Beanstalk and Rumpelstiltskin’s Daughter, as well as novels for older readers, such as Saving Sky, Bella at Midnight, and The Mysterious Matter of I. M. Fine.
Diane was born in Abilene, Texas. She earned her bachelor’s degree from Trinity University and her M. A. in medical and biological illustration from Johns Hopkins University College of Medicine. She has worked as a medical illustrator, a graphic designer for Dell Publishing, and an art director at G. P. Putnam’s Sons, winning three design awards from the New York Book Show.
She lives in Santa Fe, NM with her husband, Peter Vennema, who sometimes collaborates with her on the research for her biographies. She has three grown children, Catherine, Tamara, and John.
Diane Stanley
