Whitney Anderson

“We live in an overly saturated over stimulating environment as it is. So, when adults comes across my more artistic work brought down to a child’s levels, even they will find the book subconciously refreshing—compared to the other books they read. My refined minimilistic style is something both child and adult will appreciate. I think that so many Children’s books look too “busy” and overstimulating. My covers and even content of the pages are clean and artfully rendered—but not too ostentatious. They give the adult and child something appeasing to look. My writing and illustrations form this juxtaposition between corny entertainment and modern refinement, something my readers will find delightfully novel.” -Whitney (discussing the aesthetics of her children’s books)

Among her 25 published children’s books, she will highlight “The Great Ice Cream Blizzard”, her only Colorado-themed book: a zany fun tale about food merging with nature and the advantages and consequences that follow. Whitney grew up as a ski racer in the resort town of Breckenridge, CO, so the “Blizzard” reflects her fond childhood memories there. These stories come purely from Whitney’s raw imagination, spurred on by the mundane to the complex facets of life that she encounters every day, childhood nostalgia and universal lessons or “moral to the story” that touch the souls 0f children and adults who experience her books.

She was born in Alaska into a commercial salmon fishing family dynasty that dates back 3 generations. She has visited her family every summer so many of her books are inspired by her time in the Pacific Northwest. She grew up part of her childhood in Breckenridge as a competeive ski racer, even winning the Junior Olympics in Slolomn skiing at age 12. She then took up running as a teenager, eventually rising up to #3 fasted 5k time in the nation amongst Highschool girls. She signed a full-ride XC/track scholarship to attend Duke University and graduated in 2009 with her B.A.F. For almost 15 years Whitney has been showcasing her multidisciplinary art skills in the cosmopolitan hotbeds of New York, Miami, San Francisco, San Diego, Seattle and Denver. Her 2017 first solo international art exhibit took place in her European motherland of Åland–home to her great great grandfather who sailed to Alaska in the 1890s. Her book “Miss Metamorphosis” (published 2023) is an ode to her time in Scandinavia 8 years ago, as is the main character “Elin”–a popular Swedish girl’s name and the name of her first baby daughter born just a few months ago!