Anna Dewdney

Anna Elizabeth Dewdney (née Luhrmann; December 25, 1965 – September 3, 2016) was an American author and illustrator of children's books. The first book she wrote and illustrated, Llama Llama Red Pajama, received critical acclaim in 2005. She wrote numerous other books in the Llama Llama series, which have all been New York Times bestsellers. Her work has been adapted into stage plays, dance performances, musicals, and an animated television series for Netflix. Many states and non-profits use her books for literacy campaigns and programs, including the Library of Congress.

Dewdney spent her early childhood in Englewood, New Jersey. She had two sisters, including anthropologist Tanya Luhrmann.

She attended The Elisabeth Morrow School through the ninth grade. She continued her high school studies at Phillips Academy (Andover) and then transferred to The Putney School, graduating in 1985. She earned a bachelor's degree in Art from Wesleyan University in 1987.

Before her work became well-known, Dewdney worked as a waitress, a rural postal carrier, and a remedial language, art and history teacher at the Greenwood School with her partner, Reed Duncan.

She and Duncan lived in Vermont until her death at age 50 from complications of brain cancer.

Dewdney began her career illustrating a variety of books for both children and adults. She gained critical acclaim in 2005 for Llama Llama Red Pajama, the first book she both wrote and illustrated. Her work is known for its emotive content, signature characters, family relationships, and how it addresses the everyday issues of young children. The text of her work is often written in verse; because of this use of rhyming language, and because of Dewdney's reading-advocacy work, her books are often used to promote reading and literacy.

The Llama Llama series is highly popular among parents, teachers, and booksellers; in 2011, a Miami, Florida bookseller had the Llama Llama character tattooed on her arm for a bookstore event.

Dewdney's books have been translated into more than thirteen languages, including Chinese, Hebrew, Korean, Indonesian, Vietnamese, Polish, Spanish, Russian, Latvian, Romanian, Hungarian, Italian, and German.