Klassen, Jon (1981-…), is a Canadian-born children’s book illustrator and author. Klassen received the 2013 Caldecott Medal for his illustrations for This Is Not My Hat (2012). The book is a humorous story about a tiny fish who steals a bowler hat from a bigger fish. It follows Klassen’s best-selling picture book I Want My Hat Back (2011). The trilogy also includes We Found a Hat (2016). The Caldecott Medal is awarded annually to the illustrator of the most distinguished picture book for children published in the United States. Klassen also received a 2013 Caldecott Honor award for Extra Yarn (2012), written by the American children’s author Mac Barnett.
Klassen first gained international recognition when he won the 2010 Governor General’s Literary Award for illustration of an English-language children’s book. The book, Cats’ Night Out (2010), was written by the American children’s author Caroline Stutson. The Governor General’s Award is the highest national prize awarded for works published in Canada.
Klassen illustrated the first four books in “The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place” series of novels, begun in 2010 and written by the American children’s author Maryrose Wood. He illustrated Vanished (2012), written by the Indian-born American children’s author Sheela Chari; House Held Up by Trees (2012), written by the American poet Ted Kooser; The Dark (2013), written by the American children’s writer Lemony Snicket; and The Watch that Ends the Night: Voices from the Titanic (2013), written by the American children’s author Allan Wolf.
Klassen also illustrated Sam and Dave Dig a Hole (2014), written by Mac Barnett; The Witch’s Boy (2014), written by the American children’s author Kelly Barnhill; The Nest (2015), written by the Canadian children’s author Kenneth Oppel; Pax (2016), written by the American children’s author Sara Pennypacker; and Skunk and Badger (2020), written by the American children’s author Amy Timberlake. Klassen and Barnett again worked together on the “Shape Trilogy,” which includes the books Triangle (2017), Square (2018), and Circle (2019), about three friends. They also collaborated on The Three Billy Goats Gruff (2022).
Klassen wrote and illustrated The Rock from the Sky (2021). This picture book contains five humorous short stories, starting with one about a turtle who likes the spot where he is standing, and an armadillo who has a bad feeling about it. Klassen also wrote and illustrated The Skull: A Tyrolean Folktale (2023), a retelling of an old story about a young girl who makes friends with a talking human skull.
Jon Klassen was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, on Nov. 29, 1981, and grew up in Niagara Falls, Ontario. He studied motion-picture animation at Sheridan College in Oakville, Ontario. After graduating in 2005, Klassen moved to Los Angeles, California. He worked on the popular animated films Coraline (2009) and Kung Fu Panda 2 (2011).
