D.C. Swanson:

• Debut author
• The Book Cook is the result of a family tradition of creating and telling Christmas stories with his two daughters
• Parents worked at and have connections to New Dominion Bookshop in Charlottesville, VA

Clint Hansen:

• Debut children’s book illustrator
• Full-time artist for over 30 years
• Has done scratchboard illustrations for corporations such as NAPA and Zebco
• The Book Cook is hand-rendered in Scratchboard, an engraving technique that resembles highly detailed wood or metal engravings. White lines are created by scraping into an all black surface with a sharp blade, revealing a thin layer of white China clay beneath.
  
• Clint believes that the “the truth of the story lies in the details” and that the “texture, precision, and the nostalgic feel” of scratchboard allows him to “get lost in the work.”

 The Book Cook:

• Art reminiscent of highly-detailed Christmas classics like The Night Before Christmas  and Chris Van Allsburg's The Polar Express
• Perennial Christmas appeal
• Progressive, diverse, and family-oriented, The Book Cook promotes togetherness and individuality in the family dynamic
• Promotes literacy, imagination, and the creative process as powerful tools
• Empowers children to wield those tools as independent and adventurous stewards of language
• Cultivates strength and adaptability when faced with making ‘mistakes’
• Promotes creating and giving unique, heartfelt gifts for the holidays