Gene Barretta

Gene Barretta is an American children’s book author and illustrator, as well as an animator and character designer. He earned a B.F.A. in film studies from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts and worked in film and television production before focusing on children’s books. Barretta has also written, animated, and scored films for Sesame Street and designed characters for the Jim Henson Company.

His books include Now & Ben: The Modern Inventions of Benjamin Franklin, Dear Deer, Neo Leo: The Ageless Ideas of Leonardo da Vinci, Timeless Thomas: How Thomas Edison Changed Our Lives, and Lincoln and Kennedy: A Pair to Compare. He has also received recognition including the Carolyn W. Field Award Honor Book designation for Lincoln & Kennedy and a Bank Street Cook Prize Honor for Timeless Thomas.