About Me

Jon Lander is an author-illustrator and artist who lives in Hastings, and grew up in Cambridge in the United Kingdom.

His debut picture book, 10 Silly Children, was warmly received by the critics, with plaudits from the Guardian, the Bookseller and the Book Trust. It was longlisted for the 2022 Klaus Flugge Prize, an award celebrating the work of debut picture book artists, and was featured in the Book Trust’s Top 100 Great Books Guide 2022.

Having originally trained as a fine artist at Byam Shaw School of Art (graduating in 2011), he realised he was always making artworks that involved drawing, writing and making books, so it was a natural progression to return to his home town and attend the MA in children’s book illustration at Cambridge School of Art (graduating in 2018).

For many years, he worked as a teaching assistant in schools across the country (and even Spain), but he now works freelance full-time - making books, making art and - after missing the smell of sharpened pencils - returning to schools to teach workshops. He lives with his wife, Laura Ribbons, who is an award-winning artist.