Bill Thomson was immediately embraced by the children's book community when Karate Hour was released with his dramatic, extraordinary illustrations. This book was followed by Building with Dad, Baseball Hour, and Soccer Hour, all by Carol Nevius. But when Bill's own book, Chalk, that he conceived and illustrated without an author--was released in spring 2010, his reputation really took off. That book was short-listed for the Caldecott Award and has sold upwards of 30,000 print copies. Bill is also Associate Professor of Illustration at the University of Hartford. He and his wife, Diann, have three sons and live in Southington, CT.