From the time he was a boy, Wilson Bentley was captivated by snow. Where others saw cold and inconvenience, he saw miracles: each snowflake a tiny, one-of-a-kind work of art. With the encouragement of his parents, Wilson pursued his passion, eventually receiving a camera and microscope that allowed him to photograph snowflakes for the first time.
Though his fascination was often misunderstood, Wilson persevered. Over decades, he carefully documented hundreds of snowflakes, shared his discoveries through lectures and photographs, and at age sixty-six, published a groundbreaking book that forever changed how we understand these delicate crystals.
Jacqueline Briggs Martin is the author of Snowflake Bentley, winner of the 1999 Caldecott Medal, and The Lamp, the Ice, and the Boat Called Fish, an ALA Notable Book, a Bulletin Blue Ribbon Book, Riverbank Review Finalist, Notable Social Studies Trade book and winner of The Golden Kite Award for Illustration. She grew up on a farm in Maine much like the one in this story. She lives in Mt. Vernon, Iowa.
Caldecott Medalist Mary Azarian is a consummate gardener and a skilled and original woodblock artist. Many of her prints are heavily influenced by her love of gardening, and her turn-of-the-century farmhouse is surrounded by gardens that reveal an artist's vision. Mary Azarian received the 1999 Caldecott Medal for SNOWFLAKE BENTLEY, written by Jacqueline Briggs Martin. She lives, skis, and gardens in Vermont.