John Schu has made a career out of advocating for the people and things he cares about most: kids, books, and the people that connect them. He was named a Library Journal Mover and Shaker for his dynamic interactions with students and his passionate adoption of new technologies as a means of connecting authors, illustrators, books, and readers. He is the children’s librarian for Bookelicious, a part-time lecturer at Rutgers University, and shares his love of reading with countless educators and students around the world. He served as the Ambassador of School Libraries for Scholastic Book Fairs for almost 6 years. 

He is the author of This Is a School, illustrated by Veronica Miller Jamison; This Is a Story, illustrated by Caldecott Honor artist Lauren Castillo; Ruthie Rose’s Big Idea: A Poetry Story, illustrated by Holly Hatam; Louder Than Hunger; and The Gift of Story: Exploring the Affective Side of the Reading Life. He is a contributor to The Creativity Project, edited by Colby Sharp.  His forthcoming books include Lily-May’s Joyful Day (Candlewick Press, 2026), illustrated by Holly Hatam, and This Is a Theater (Candlewick Press, 2027), illustrated by Jaime Kim. John Schu lives in Naperville, Illinois. 

**John will be hosting a pre-conference session on Thursday, April 30th, from 1-4. 

Kate DiCamillo is the author of many books for young readers. Her books have been awarded the Newbery Medal (Flora & Ulysses in 2014 and The Tale of Despereaux in 2004); the Newbery Honor (Because of Winn-Dixie, 2001), the Boston Globe Horn Book Award (The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane, 2006), and the Theodor Geisel Medal and honor (Bink and Gollie, co-author Alison McGhee, 2011; Mercy Watson Goes for a Ride, 2007). She is a National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature Emerita, appointed by the Library of Congress.

Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and raised in Clermont, Florida, Kate now lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Alan Gratz is the bestselling author of more than twenty novels, graphic novels, and novellas for young readers. His 2017 novel Refugee has spent more than five years on the New York Times bestseller list, and is the winner of 14 state awards. Its other accolades include the Sydney Taylor Book Award, the National Jewish Book Award, the Cybils Middle Grade Fiction Award, a Charlotte Huck Award Honor, and a Malka Penn Award for Human Rights Honor. Refugee was also a Global Read Aloud Book for 2018.

Alan’s 2025 novel War Games, 2024 novel Heroes, 2022 novel Two Degrees, and his 2021 novel Ground Zero were all instant #1 New York Times bestsellers, and were also ABA Indie, USA Today, and Publishers Weekly bestsellers. His 2019 novel Allies debuted at #2 on the New York Times bestseller list and received four starred reviews, and 2018’s Grenade debuted at #3. His other books include Prisoner B-3087, which was a YALSA Best Fiction for Young Readers pick and winner of eight state awards; Projekt 1065, a Kirkus Best Middle Grade Book of 2016 and winner of five state awards; Code of Honor, a YALSA Quick Pick for Young Readers; and Ban This Book, which was featured by Whoopi Goldberg on The View.

Alan has traveled extensively to talk about his books, appearing at schools and book festivals in 39 states and a half-dozen countries, including Brazil, Canada, China, Indonesia, Japan, and Switzerland, and has been a Writer in Residence at Tokyo’s American School in Japan, the James Thurber House in Columbus, Ohio, and the Jakarta Intercultural School in Indonesia.

Alan was born and raised in Knoxville, Tennessee, home of the 1982 World’s Fair. After a carefree but humid childhood, Alan attended the University of Tennessee, where he earned a College Scholars degree with a specialization in creative writing, and, later, a Master’s degree in English education. A member of the East Tennessee Writers Hall of Fame, Alan now lives with his family in Portland, Oregon, where he enjoys playing games, eating pizza, and, perhaps not too surprisingly, reading books.

Angie Thomas was born and raised in Mississippi, but now calls Atlanta her home. She is a former teen rapper whose greatest accomplishment was an article about her in Right-On Magazine with a picture included. She holds a BFA in Creative Writing from Belhaven University and an unofficial degree in Hip Hop. She can also still rap if needed. She is an inaugural winner of the Walter Dean Myers Grant 2015, awarded by We Need Diverse Books. Her award-winning, acclaimed debut novel, The Hate U Give, is a #1 New York Times bestseller and major motion picture from Fox 2000, starring Amandla Stenberg and directed by George Tillman, Jr. Her second novel, On the Come Up, is a #1 NYT bestseller as well, and a film directed by Sanaa Lathan with Angie acting as a producer. In 2020, Angie released Find Your Voice: A Guided Journal to Writing Your Truth as a tool to help aspiring writers tell their stories, and in 2021, Angie returned to the top of the NYT bestseller list with Concrete Rose, a prequel to The Hate U Give that focuses on seventeen-year-old Maverick Carter. Her latest work, Nic Blake and the Remarkables: The Manifestor Prophecy, is the first in a series aimed at young readers as well as Angie’s first foray into the fantasy genre. Another #1 NYT best seller, it follows twelve-year-old Nic Blake, who finds herself immersed in a magical world heavily influenced by Black history and folklore. A film adaptation is forthcoming with Angie helming the script and producing. When she isn’t writing Angie spends her days as a minion to her puppy, Kobe.