Gene Barretta is the author and illustrator of the critically acclaimed picture books Now and Ben and Neo Leo. Look for the third book in the series, Timeless Thomas, focused on Thomas Edison, in 2012. Before Gene began his career as an illustrator, he graduated from New York University with a BFA in Film Studies and worked for many years in film and television production, completing several films for Sesame Street.
Client List
Henry Holt & Co.
Dutton
Harcourt
The Jim Henson Company
Sesame Street
Between the Lions
SRA McGraw-HIll
Houghton Mifflin
Scholastic
Tommy Nelson Publishing
Intervisual Books
Awards / Honors
2007 Carolyn W. Field Award
2011 Zoola Palooza chosen among Amazon's Best Books of the Month for June
2010 NSTA/CBC Outstanding Science Trade Book for Students K-12 list for Neo Leo
2010 Teacher's Choice Booklist by The International Reader's Association for Neo Leo
2009 Children's Book of the Month Club for Neo Leo
2009 Scholastic Instructor's Magazine's "First-Rate Biographies" for Neo Leo
2008 Notable Children's Book in the Language Arts by The National Council of Teachers of English for Dear Deer
2007 Notable Social Studies Trade Books for Young Readers by The National Council for Social Studies and the Children's Book Council for Now & Ben
2007 Mom Tested Books of the Year in "Parenting" magazine for Dear Deer
2006 Number 3 on The New York Times Best Seller List for Sheetzucacapoopoo: My Kind of Dog
Reviews
Zoola Palooza: A Book of Homographs, written and illustrated by Gene Barretta...
[Kids will] enjoy Barretta’s wit and the atmosphere of controlled chaos in the high-energy watercolor illustrations. —Booklist Review
This is a fun way to introduce the concept of homographs... —School Library Journal
Now and Ben: The Modern Inventions of Benjamin Franklin, written and illustrated by Gene Barretta...
With its breezy format and succinct text, the book delivers facts in an assuredly kid-friendly style...
—Publisher's Weekly
Dear Deer: A Book of Homophones, written and illustrated by Gene Barretta...
"A curiosity for young children and a pleasant addition to school units that include homophones..."
—Booklist
Neo Leo: The Ageless Ideas of Leonardo da Vinci, written and illustrated by Gene Barretta...
"This accessible introduction will inspire children to look closely at the world around them and come up with some creations of their own."
—School Library Journal
Jack the Tripper, written and illustrated by Gene Barretta...
"Wall-to-wall drollery, both in Barretta's illustrations and his text, which is sophisticated as well as accessible. Wodehouse with a dash of Gorey."
