Jerry Craft

Jerry Craft is the New York Times bestselling author and illustrator of the graphic novels "New Kid," "Class Act," and "School Trip". Craft has a long history of acclaim, with "New Kid" winning the John Newbery Medal for the most outstanding contribution to children’s literature in 2020, the Kirkus Prize for Young Readers’ Literature in 2019, and the Coretta Scott King Author Award for the most outstanding work by an African American writer in 2020. This graphic novel was the first to receive the Newbery Medal, marking a significant achievement in Craft's career.

In addition to his graphic novels, Craft is well known for creating the comic strip "Mama’s Boyz," which received the Glyph Awards in 2013 for Best Comic Strip or Webcomic. He is a co-founder of the Schomburg Center’s Annual Black Comic Book Festival. His other notable works include "The Offenders: Saving the World While Serving Detention!", which was co-written with his sons Jaylen and Aren Craft, and "Mama's Boyz" collections such as "As American as Sweet Potato Pie!" and "Home Schoolin' – Because Learning Shouldn't Stop at 3 O'Clock". He has also illustrated books such as "Hillary's Big Business Adventure" and "Khalil's Way".

Born in Harlem and raised in the Washington Heights section of New York City, Craft now resides in Norwalk, Connecticut. He regularly engages with the community, performing cartooning workshops at schools, camps, and libraries. It's not just about creating comics and books for Craft, it's also about inspiring the next generation of creators and readers.