New York Times-bestselling author Erin Entrada Kelly was awarded the Newbery Medal for Hello, Universe. She grew up in Lake Charles, Louisiana, and lives in Delaware. She is a professor of children’s literature in the graduate fiction and publishing programmes at Rosemont College, where she earned her MFA. Her short fiction has been nominated for the Philippines Free Press Literary Award for Short Fiction and the Pushcart Prize. Her debut novel, 'Blackbird Fly,' was a Kirkus Best Book, a School Library Journal Best Book, an ALSC Notable Book, and an Asian/Pacific American Literature Honor Book. Erin’s other books include 'The Land of Forgotten Girls,' winner of the Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature, 'You Go First,' a Spring 2018 Indie Next Pick, 'Lalani of the Distant Sea' and 'We Dream of Space.' The author’s mother was the first in her family to immigrate to the United States from the Philippines, and now lives in Cebu.