Maira Kalman is an illustrator, author, and designer celebrated for her unique delightful of politics and contemporary life. A frequent contributor to The New Yorker, she is well-known for her collaboration with Rick Meyerwitz on the “New Yorkistan” cover in 2001. She is also the creator of two monthly online columns for the New York Times: a narrative journal of her life called The Principles of Uncertainty (2006-07) and a year-long exploration of American history and democracy called And The Pursuit of Happiness (2009). Both columns are now collected in book form. Kalman has designed clocks, umbrellas, and other accessories for the Museum of Modern Art, fabric for Isaac Mizrahi, accessories for Kate Spade, and sets for the Mark Morris Dance Company. She has written and illustrated thirteen children’s books, including Ooh-la-la-Max in Love, and What Pete Ate and her most recent books for young adults, 13 WORDS and Why We Broke Up, are collaborations with author Daniel Handler.
Under the pen name Lemony Snicket, Daniel Handler is the author of the macabre collection of children’s novels, A Series of Unfortunate Events. The popular series-turned-Hollywood-blockbuster, follows the Baudelaire orphans as they navigate calamity after calamity. Under his given name, the native San Franciscan is the author of three novels: The Basic Eight, Watch Your Mouth, and Adverbs. Handler has worked intermittently in film and music, most recently in collaboration with composer Nathanial Stookey on a piece commissioned by the San Francisco Symphony, entitled The Composer Is Dead, which has been performed all over the world. Among Handler’s remarkable talents is his skill on the accordion which he has played with Stephen Merritt and The Magnetic Fields among other groups. Handler has written for The New York Times, Newsday, San Francisco Chronicle, The Believer, Chickfactor, and various anthologies.