Lau­rel Sny­der is the author of many books for chil­dren, includ­ing the Geisel-win­ning Char­lie and Mouse series, the Syd­ney Tay­lor Award-win­ning The Longest Night, and Orphan Island, which was longlist­ed for the Nation­al Book Award. A grad­u­ate of the Iowa Writ­ers’ Work­shop, Lau­rel also writes occa­sion­al­ly for such out­lets as The New York Times, The Atlantic, and NPR’s All Things Con­sid­ered.