Ruth-Mary Smith is an Australian illustrator with a special love of the gentle emotions portrayed in picture books. Her style has been described as sweet, warm and whimsical. She enjoys working with the traditional materials of watercolour and pencil, and she also produces digital illustrations. Alysia is a party-planning, award-winning Junior Primary teacher and mum to four wildly fun kids (two with paws!). When she's not wrangling glitter or googly eyes, she's busy dreaming up her next idea! Alysia loves writing stories filled with humour, heart, and hope, the kind that spark joy and inspire even the most reluctant readers.