Kris Aro McLeod
ILLUSTRATION
Granny Smith was Not an Apple
Peter Pauper Press, September 2023
Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection
written by Sarah Glenn Fortson
illustrated by Kris Aro McLeod
''Listen carefully. Do you hear a crunching sound? Peel back England's fog. You'll find Maria Ann Smith. A woman raised tough to the core.''
In the 1800s, a migrant farmer named Maria Ann Smith worked as an apple orchardist. Her discovery of a new type of apple that never turned red, but was always green, tart, sweet, and perfect for a pie, was due in part to a fluke of nature, and in part to Maria's insight and determination. The beloved Granny Smith apple that we know today was named in her honor. This is her story.
Catch a Kiss
Available in both picture and board book formats
Sleeping Bear Press, July 2021
written by Debbie Dieson
illustrated by Kris Aro McLeod
"McLeod's delicate, fine-lined watercolors elevate it in depicting its loving mother-daughter pair with medium-brown skin, brown eyes, and ebullient brown curls (Izzie's a little bit more unruly than her mama's). McLeod never depicts the errant kiss, leaving both Izzie and readers to imagine it as they will. A sweet mother-daughter idyll that provides a mirror for any number of brown-skinned readers. (Picture book. 3-6)"
- Kirkus
Bible Gems to Remember
Zonderkidz, August 2019
320 Pages, fully illustrated
written by Robin Schmitt
illustrated by Kris Aro McLeod
The Peculiar Haunting of Thelma Bee
Mighty Media Press, August 2016
written by Erin Petti
illustrated by Kris Aro McLeod
“… a smart, fun, and inventive adventure down a fantastical rabbit-hole. Thelma’s world is brimming with wit, colorful characters, and unexpected thrills. (And magic, of course.)” —Neil Reynolds, writer for The CW’s The Vampire Diaries
“Thoroughly original, but with little echoes of everything from Stars Hollow to Ghostbusters to Bufy the Vampire Slayer, it’s sure to leave everybody as it left me: looking for the next page.” —David Mogolov, writer, comedian, and parenting advice columnist for The Boston Globe
Lizzie and the Last Day of School
Sleeping Bear Press, Spring 2015
written by Trinka Hakes Noble
illustrated by Kris Aro McLeod
"The scene where Lizzie returns to school to hug Miss G. good-bye is unexpectedly poignant. Colorful artwork that looks to be done in pencil and watercolors illustrates the settings, the characters, and their activities with finesse. An appealing picture book for reading aloud."
- Carolyn Phelan, Booklist
"McLeod's round-headed, rosy-cheeked characters share their every emotion, especially Lizzie and Miss G. on the final day."
- Kirkus