Pam MuÃąoz Ryan is the recipient the NEA's Human and Civil Rights Award, the PEN America Award, and the 2024 Childrenâs Literature Legacy Award for her body of work. She was the 2018 U.S. nominee for the international Hans Christian Andersen Award. She received a Newbery Honor Medal and the Kirkus Prize for her New York Times bestselling novel, Echo. Her other celebrated novels, Esperanza Rising, The Dreamer, Riding Freedom, Becoming Naomi LÊon, Paint the Wind, and MaÃąanaland, have received countless accolades, among them the Pura BelprÊ Award, the Jane Addams Children's Book Award, and the AmÊricas Award. Her acclaimed picture books include Amelia and Eleanor Go for a Ride and the Sibert Honor book When Marian Sang, both illustrated by Brian Selznick, Mice and Beans illustrated by Joe Cepeda, and Tony Baloney illustrated by Edwin Fotheringham, as well as a beginning reader series featuring Tony Baloney. Ryan lives near San Diego, California, with her family.