Brian Wildsmith was born on January 22, 1930. He studied at the Slade School of Fine Art, London for three years. He later taught maths at the Royal Military School of Music but left so that he could pursue painting.

He began working with Oxford University Press in the late 1950s when he was commissioned to illustrate 12 color plates for Tales from the Arabian Nights. He wrote and illustrated more than 80 books during his lifetime including A Christmas Story, Cat on the Mat, and ABC, which won the Kate Greenaway Medal. He died on August 31, 2016 at the age of 86.

(Bowker Author Biography)