Christy Ottaviano Books
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ABOUT
Christy Ottaviano Books is a boutique imprint of Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, part of the Hachette Book Group, which specializes in creative publishing of high quality children’s books. The imprint publishes approximately 30 titles per year with a spotlight on developing authors and artists, providing intensive and inspiring editorial feedback and art direction to nurture both debut and established talent.
MISSION
The line’s broad scope features author-illustrators and encompasses literary and commercial fiction and nonfiction from preschool through young adult: books that encourage imagination and free-thinking; foster a sense of family, community, and history; target the feelings of children; and speak directly to young people’s interests as they explore various milestones—contemporary classics that both challenge and entertain inquisitive readers.
Meet the Team
Christy Ottaviano is VP and Publisher of Christy Ottaviano Books. Christy was Publisher of her eponymous imprint at the Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group for twelve years prior to moving to Little, Brown Books for Young Readers. She has edited many bestselling books for young readers and teens, and her books have garnered such honors as the National Book Award, the Caldecott Honor, the Boston Globe-Horn Book Award, the Ezra Jack Keats Award, the John Steptoe Award, the EB White Read Aloud Award, the Coretta Scott King Award, the Bank Street College Josette Frank and Claudia Lewis Awards, the Cooke Prize, the Edgar Award, the NCTE Orbis Pictus Award, the Founders Award, as well as various New York Times Notable and ALA Notable and Best Books, among other honors. She holds graduate degrees in English Literature and in English and Art Education from Boston College and Columbia University.
Photo by Don Hamerman
Jessica Anderson is a Senior Editor at Christy Ottaviano Books and works on a wide range of middle grade and YA fiction and nonfiction, as well as select picture books and graphic novels. She is the editor of Indigenous Ingenuity: A Celebration of Traditional North American Knowledge by Deidre Havrelock and Edward Kay; the Morris Award finalist Black Girl Unlimited by Echo Brown; Flying High: The Story of Gymnastics Champion Simone Biles by Michelle Meadows, illustrated by Ebony Glenn, and Dead End Girls by Wendy Heard, which was an ALA Rainbow List Selection and a YALSA Quick Pick for Reluctant Young Adult Readers, among other titles. Originally from Montreal, Canada, Jessica is a native French speaker. She holds a bachelor’s degree in comparative literature from Columbia University.
Leyla Erkan is an Assistant Editor at Christy Ottaviano Books. Prior to joining the team full-time at LBYR, Leyla interned with Christy for two seasons while at Macmillan. She has also worked with NYU Press and The Bronx is Reading as a freelance designer, supported COB author Jennifer Bertman with her Book Scavenger website, and interned at Nike in their Global Internal Communications department. Leyla played Division I tennis at Florida State University, where she earned bachelor’s degrees in Creative Writing and Communications/Media Studies.
