Marisabina Russo author page

Marisabina Russo biography

Marisabina Russo is an American author and illustrator known for her contributions to children’s and young adult literature. Born in New York City in 1950, she earned a Bachelor of Arts in Studio Art from Mount Holyoke College in 1971.

Russo began her career as a freelance illustrator, creating spot drawings and covers for publications such as The New Yorker. Her first book illustration was for Nikki Giovanni’s Vacation Time. In 1986, she both wrote and illustrated her debut picture book, The Line Up Book, which won the International Reading Association Children’s Book Award and remains in print.

Her works often draw from personal and family experiences. Always Remember Me (2005), based on her grandmother’s survival during the Holocaust, was named an American Library Association Notable Book. In 2021, she published a graphic memoir, Why Is Everybody Yelling? Growing Up in My Immigrant Family, exploring her upbringing in a postwar immigrant household.

Russo’s books have been translated into multiple languages, including Japanese and Korean. She has collaborated with various publishers, such as Greenwillow Books, Simon & Schuster, and Macmillan. Her illustrations, characterized by colorful gouache paintings, have also accompanied works by authors like Kevin Henkes and Susan Straight.

In 2021, Why Is Everybody Yelling? was selected for the Texas Library Association’s TAYSHAS Reading List.