Kristine A. Lombardi - Crouton
Joining me for this episode is author-illustrator Kristine A. Lombardi. We have a chat about her latest children’s book, Crouton. Crouton was inspired by Boo, the sweet shelter cat who adopted Kristine. Learn more about what it takes to not only write but also illustrate a wonderful and successful book for children. Enjoy!
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BIO:
Kristine began her career as an art director in advertising and promotions, working on large consumer accounts such as Pepsi, Tanqueray and Orbitz. In 2003 she left agency life to pursue design and illustration-working with publishers, event planners, magazines, PR firms, corporate clients and manufacturers . She added author to her title with the debut of her first picture book "Lovey Bunny" in 2015 (Abrams) Her second book "The Grumpy Pets" received a glowing New York Times review and was named a "Children's Choice" selection by the International Literacy Association. Her detailed work on “Mr. Biddles” (Harper Collins) was featured in Uppe
rcase’s “Ephemera” book in 2019. Her books have been translated in Romanian, Chinese, Korean and Japanese.
In 2020, she illustrated “The Belonging Tree”–a thoughtful picture book about respect, inclusion and acceptance in a woodland community of animals. (Christy Ottaviano Books) She also wrote two art instruction books : “The Art of Nature Painting in Watercolor” and “Paint Every Little Thing”. (Walter Foster, 2021).
“My Wish for the World”–a comforting picture book that delivers a hopeful message on the role kindness can play in our everyday lives, was released in 2023. (Little, Brown)
CROUTON–a cat adoption story, will debut in 2026! (Random House)
Kristine also teaches privately and through community outreach programs-working with everyone from 5 years of age to 90. She creates artwork for the licensing industry and works on a range of products from greeting cards and gifts to decorative tableware, soft goods and wall art. An early riser, Kristine can be found creating in her sunny studio, while her sweet calico rescue Boo naps nearby. She is a member of SCBWI, CBIG and The Author's Guild.
Transcript: