Schyffert, Bea Uusma

PERSONAL: Female.

ADDRESSES: Home—Sweden. Agent—c/o Author Mail, Chronicle Books, 85 Second St., 6th Floor, San Francisco, CA 94105.

CAREER: Children's book illustrator and writer.

AWARDS, HONORS: Swedish Book Art Award, International Book Art Competition award, 2002, Best Books of 2003, School Library Journal, CCCB Choices selection, American Library Association Notable Books for Children designation, Batchelder Honor Book designation, and Nonfiction Honor Book designation, Boston Globe/Horn Book, all 2004, and Louisiana Young Readers' Choice nominee, 2006, all for The Man Who Went to the Far Side of the Moon: The Story of Apollo 11 Astronaut Michael Collins.

WRITINGS:

(And illustrator) The Man Who Went to the Far Side of the Moon: The Story of Apollo 11 Astronaut Michael Collins (children's book), translated by Emi Guner, Chronicle Books (San Francisco, CA), 2003.

Also illustrator of Swedish-language books for children.

SIDELIGHTS: Swedish illustrator and author of children's books, Bea Uusma Schyffert, made her American debut with the award-winning 2003 self-illustrated picture book, The Man Who Went to the Far Side of the Moon: The Story of Apollo 11 Astronaut Michael Collins. Schyffert tells the story of unsung hero Collins, who orbited the moon fourteen times in 1969 while his more famous colleagues, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin, landed on the moon and were the first humans to step on the lunar surface. It was Collins's job to stay in orbit and await the return of the landing capsule. Telling his story, Schyffert also relates the nuts-and-bolts story of the spacecraft that carried the men and their preparation for their historic journey. Schyffert created a picture book that is reminiscent of a scrapbook in design, with photos from space, charts, and illustrations.

Reviewing The Man Who Went to the Far Side of the Moon in Booklist, Karin Snelson called it an "excellent book," noting that Schyffert "does a brilliant job of capturing the enormity of space travel during this suspenseful journey." Similarly, a reviewer for Horn Book noted that Schyffert combines "pulse-pounding graphic design with the intensity of present-tense narration." School Library Journal critic John Peters concluded that "this book will inspire any child intrigued by the past or future of space exploration."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Book Links, November, 2004, Katie Maehlmann, review of The Man Who Went to the Far Side of the Moon: The Story of Apollo 11 Astronaut Michael Collins, p. 35.

Booklist, November 1, 2003, Karin Snelson, review of The Man Who Went to the Far Side of the Moon, p. 495.

Horn Book, January-February, 2005, review of The Man Who Went to the Far Side of the Moon, p. 24.

Instructor, September, 2003, Judy Freeman, review of The Man Who Went to the Far Side of the Moon, p. 70.

Reading Today, August-September, 2004, "Horn Book/Boston Globe Awards Announced," p. 23.

School Library Journal, October, 2003, John Peters, review of The Man Who Went to the Far Side of the Moon, p. 204; April, 2004, review of The Man Who Went to the Far Side of the Moon, p. S41.