Stead << stehd, >> Erin E. (1982-…), an American illustrator of children’s books, won the 2011 Caldecott Medal for A Sick Day for Amos McGee (2010). The Caldecott Medal is awarded annually to the most distinguished picture book for children published in the United States. A Sick Day for Amos McGee was Stead’s first children’s book. The book was written by her husband, Philip C. Stead.
A Sick Day for Amos McGee tells the story of kindly old zookeeper Amos McGee and his friendship with five zoo animals—an elephant, tortoise, penguin, rhinoceros, and owl. The animals leave the zoo to visit McGee in his home after he catches a bad cold. Stead illustrated the book with wood-block prints and pencil. A wood-block print is made using an inked, carved block of wood.
Erin also illustrated her husband’s picture books Bear Has a Story to Tell (2012), Lenny and Lucy (2015), Music for Mister Moon (2019), and The Sun Is Late and So Is the Farmer (2022). In 2017, the Steads collaborated on completing a fairy tale by the American author Mark Twain. Twain started the book, The Purloining of Prince Oleomargarine, in 1879 for his young daughters but never finished it. Erin Stead has also illustrated books written by other authors.
Erin E. Maloney was born in Farmington Hills, Michigan, on Dec. 27, 1982. She and Philip Stead married in 2005.
