Cynthia Rylant has written more than 130 books for kids, including the Newbery Award-winning Missing May and the Caldecott Honor Book When I Was Young in the Mountains. Rylant's works in fiction, nonfiction, and poetry have been praised for their clarity and sensitivity. This new book traces her life from growing up in a coal-mining family in West Virginia to being one of the most beloved children's writers of her time.