Early life and education

Brown-Wood was born in California.^[2] She attended the University of California, Los Angeles, where she earned a bachelor of arts in psychology and applied developmental psychology in 2007. She then attended California State University, Sacramento, for a master of arts in child development. She received a Ph.D. in education from the University of California, Davis.^[2]

Career

Brown-Wood is a member of the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators. She is also a professor and researcher at the University of California, Davis.^[2]

Her book Grandma's Tiny House (Charlesbridge, 2017) received a starred review from Publishers Weekly.^[3] In 2021, following the announcement that certain Dr. Seuss books would no longer be republished due to how certain groups were depicted, Stephen Colbert recommended Brown-Wood's book Imani's Moon (Charlesbridge, 2014) on The Colbert Report, asking the audience to "consider these books from people of color".^[4]

Why Not You? (Random House, 2022), which Brown-Wood wrote with Ciara and Russell Wilson, received a starred review from School Library Journal.^[5] It was a New York Times bestseller.^[6]

Brown-Wood has written other children's books, including a biography of Harriet Tubman.^[7]

Personal life

Brown-Wood is married and has one child.^[2]

Picture books

• Imani's Moon, illustrated by Hazel Mitchell, Charlesbridge, 2014.^[8]
• Grandma’s Tiny House: A Counting Story! illustrated by Priscilla Burris, Charlesbridge, 2017.^[3][9]
• Shhh! The Baby’s Asleep, illustrated by Elissambura, Charlesbridge, 2021.
• Follow that Line! Magic at Your Fingertips, illustrated by Robert Justus. Running Kids Press (New York, NY), 2022.
• Why Not You? Ciara and Russell Wilson, illustrated by Jessica Gibson. Random House, 2022.^{[10][5][11][6]}