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 June Sobel was born in New York City
and grew up on Long Island in the suburb of Oceanside, New
York. Her earliest memories include a chimp smoking a cigar and
an orange helium balloon that stood straight up. As a child she
loved to read and draw. Her Saturday classes at the Art Student’s
League in New York City influenced her to major in art in
college. June received a Studio Art degree from Skidmore College
in Saratoga Springs, New York. After spending two years working
in the music industry designing album covers, she decided
to return to graduate school to pursue an MFA in Painting
at Stanford University. Upon graduation she received an individual
grant from the National Endowment for the Arts.
The next few years June juggled a fine art and commercial art
career. Her paintings and drawings were exhibited at many museums
and galleries throughout the United States, including the Smithsonian
and the Los Angeles Museum of Art. Eventually June became a full-time
freelance illustrator creating artwork for the gift industry,
toy companies and advertising agencies.
 The
birth of her son, Adam, renewed her love of the read aloud magic
of the picture book. June loves the challenge of creating pictures
with words and writing for those very young pre-readers. B
IS FOR BULLDOZER – A Construction ABC (Illustrated
by Melissa Iwai) was her first venture into the world of children’s
books. Her child’s obsession with heavy equipment led her
to write the book she couldn’t find – an ABC book
about construction that also told a story. In 2006, pre-schoolers
can look forward to a rollicking, alphabet adventure in SHIVER
ME LETTERS – A Pirate ABC (Illustrated by Henry
Cole) and the bedtime travels of THE
GOOD NIGHT TRAIN (Illustrated by Laura Huliska-Beith.)
 June
lives in Westlake Village, California with her husband Mark Raudonis,
her son Adam and an adorable Norfolk Terrier named Dudley. Some
of her favorite things are kayaking in the morning at Fallen Leaf
Lake, laughing, great books, yoga, coincidences, seeing her friends
- new and old, hiking, taking photos, knitting, gardening, skiing,
conversing with Dudley – her teenage terrier,
eating ice cream, fun parties, watching old black and white movies,
really good chocolate and swimming in the ocean.
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All images Copyright © June
Sobel, 2006, unless otherwise noted. All rights reserved.
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