Peter Valdez and Tasche Laine, co-authors
Peter Valdez III and his wife, Tasche Laine (a multi-genre author), collaborated on their first children’s book, Get Up, Lil Peter. Get Up!, to pay tribute to Peter’s grandfather. The oldest of 29 grandchildren, Peter was nicknamed ‘Lil Peter’ to differentiate him from his father and grandfather. Each story in the series is told with a message or lesson that impacted Peter’s life as a child, and grounded him as an adult.
Peter was born and raised in and around the Los Angeles area, in California. He currently lives in the Pacific Northwest with Tasche and their pups, Story & Page. He also enjoys coaching and playing soccer.
To find out more about Tasche and her other books, visit her website at taschelaine.com.
The Authors
Mei Mei Leonard
Mei Mei Leonard is an Oregonian illustrator and animator. She graduated from PNCA (Pacific Northwest College of Art) in 2020 with a BFA in animation.
Although her work is primarily digital now, she has a great fondness for traditional pencils and inks. She enjoys fairytales, and general childhood whimsy in the things she draws, but is not one to shy away from serious topics.
When working, Mei Mei favors character design and fleshing out a character’s personality—whether from their clothes, their expressions, or their movement. Her dream is to one day publish her own series of graphic novels (Internet, hard copy, or both)! She is new to the picture book scene, and revels in exploring the new opportunities and challenges.
The Illustrator
Fun Photos
