Thomas F. Yezerski always liked to read, write, and draw. He would read by flashlight under the covers after he was supposed to be asleep. Sometimes, when friends came to his house to ask him to play, he would hide so he could stay inside and draw.

Tom was born in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, in 1969. Before his family settled down in South Whitehall Township, young Tommy lived in four other small Pennsylvania towns and attended three different elementary schools, St. Jane Frances de Chantal in Easton, Immaculate Conception in Berwick, and St. Catharine of Siena in Allentown. He graduated from Parkland High School in 1987.

Though reading and drawing were his favorite things to do, Tom had other interests as well. He played xylophone in the band, and he was a Boy Scout, earning the rank of Eagle Scout in 1983. For his Eagle Project, he led some scouts in building a wigwam.

Tom took his first art lessons during the third grade. He rode his bike to an artist’s studio every Saturday morning and copied postcards in chalk pastel. Tom got serious during high school and took drawing and color theory lessons at The Barnstone Studios, in Coplay, PA. Tom earned his B.F.A. in Illustration in 1991, at Syracuse University.

For many years, Tom worked on his portfolio, wrote stories that weren’t very good, swept floors and washed dishes. His first art job was creating prints for children’s clothing. Tom started writing about his Polish and Irish immigrant heritage in 1994, and in 1998 that story became his first published book, Together in Pinecone Patch. Family is one of his favorite themes, and it continues with Queen of the World and A Full Hand, about his sisters and father, respectively. Seven other books carry Tom’s illustration credit, as well as three stories in Cricket and a poster for the Children’s Book Council.

Besides writing and illustrating children’s books, Tom likes vegetarian cooking and running marathons. He also loves to visit schools to tell children about how a kid who likes to read and draw can become a published author and illustrator. These days, when friends come over to ask him to play, he doesn’t hide so he can stay in and draw — usually.