Patrick McDonnell is the creator of the Mutts comic strip, which recently celebrated its fifteenth anniversary, as well as several bestselling children's books including Wag!, The Gift of Nothing, Just Like Heaven, South, Hug Time, and Art. He has been hailed as 'the next Charles Schulz.

A 2012 Caldecott Honor BookA Charlotte Zolotow Award WinnerA Horn Book Fanfare BookA New York Times Best Illustrated Children's BookA New York Times Notable Children's BookA Booklist Editor's Choice BookA Kirkus Reviews Best BookA Kids' Indie Next List BookA 2011 Bank Street College Children's Book Committee Outstanding BookA University of Wisconsin-Madison CCBC 2012 Children's Choices BookA Parents' Choice Silver Honor BookA National Parenting Publications Awards Gold WinnerA Booklinks Lasting Connections BookThis remarkable picture book is one of the few that speaks, in a meaningful way, to all ages. - Booklist, starred reviewMcDonnell's book is... inspirational. - The Horn Book, starred reviewChildren will appreciate McDonnell's original format and take heart that interests logged in their own diaries might turn into lifelong passions. - Kirkus Reviews, starred reviewMcDonnell's skill as a cartoonist enables him to express Goodall's joy, wonder and satisfaction with a simple stroke of the pen. - New York Times[A] tender homage... engaging... an appealing and satisfying introduction to a well-known scientist and activist. - School Library JournalMcDonnell's concentration on [Goodall's] childhood fantasies carries a strong message to readers that their own dreams--even the wildly improbable ones--may be realizable, too. - Publishers Weekly