Prolific children’s author and illustrator Loren Long has signed a two-book deal with Roaring Brook Press, the Associated Press reports.
Long’s contract with the Macmillan imprint, which publishes books for younger readers, is reportedly worth six figures.
Long worked as a greeting card illustrator before working on children’s books such as The Wonders of Donal O’Donnell, written by Gary Schmidt; I Dream of Trains, written by Angela Johnson; and Toy Boat, written by Randall de Sève. In recent years, he’s worked with high-profile authors including Barack Obama (Of Thee I Sing) and Amanda Gorman (Change Sings), and wrote his own series of books featuring a lovable tractor.
Roaring Brook revealed details about Long’s next book, The Yellow Bus, which it calls “a tender and soulful story about a forgotten school bus that finds happiness and purpose in the most unexpected places—and in the journey along the way.” Long told the AP the book was inspired by his “noticing a rusted and abandoned school bus sitting in a field with goats climbing in and out of it.”
The book will follow a bus that transports children and adults before being decommissioned. The publisher says it will feature “stirring black-and-white artwork and powerful pops of color.” It is scheduled for publication on June 25, 2024.
Michael Schaub, a journalist and regular contributor to NPR, lives near Austin, Texas.
