RISA HORIUCHI’s phase of obsessively drawing mice and cats began when she was old enough to hold a crayon. Luckily, she does not foresee this phase ending, ever. She graduated from the School of Visual Arts with a BFA in Illustration. Risa uses traditional pen and ink, as well as digital brushes to create her charming creatures. She is inspired by the work of Quentin Blake, Charlotte Voake, and Daniel Salmieri. When she isn’t drawing or painting, she is often cooking pasta, listening to science podcasts, or reading picture books with her young niece. Risa lives in Irvington, NY with her family and a rather large goldfish.

Visit Risa online at:
 www.risadraws.com
 www.instagram.com/risadraws

For more information, please contact Teresa at teresa(a)bookmarkliterary.com.

Risa’s Bookshelf:

K IS FOR KINDNESS
by Rina and Risa Horiuchi
Viking Children’s Books, 2022

“An abecedarian collection of animals performing good deeds. Sister duo Rina and Risa Horiuchi stroll through the alphabet in their picture-book debut, which shows various animal friends helping each other out. Both the uppercase and lowercase versions of the letters are spotlighted in the vignettes, and the first letter of each sentence is colored blue. The quirky animals find themselves in everyday situations. For instance, “Ape picks an apple for Aardvark below,” while “Bat puts a bandage on Brown Bear’s big toe.” On another double-page spread, “Elephant finds Eagle’s eyeglasses—phew! and “Fox fixes Frog’s broken fire truck with glue.” And for those trickier letters at the end of the alphabet: “Weasel knits Walrus a warm, woolen sweater” as “X-ray Fish signs ‘XOX’ in his letter.” There is no shortage of animal alphabet books, but these spare rhymes, paired with delicate digital ink-and-watercolor illustrations, are a delight. Uncluttered pastel backgrounds keep everything feeling airy and bright. Explaining an abstract concept like kindness to children can be challenging; thankfully, this book provides young readers will many concrete object lessons. The ending turns reflective, asking readers how they might be kind today. A primer for young minds learning both letters and empathy.”—Kirkus Reviews