Milja Praagman (born 1971) grew up in an old house on a dike, surrounded by lots of animals and space. She studied graphic design and illustration at the Academy for Visual Arts Sint-Joost in Breda. Her first clients were mainly newspapers and magazines. Later, she also worked as an animator for Sesamstraat, the Dutch Sesame Street.
Before long, she was brimming with new ideas for her own stories. One of these became her first picture book Mister Po, which won immediate acclaim from the press. Since then, she has been unstoppable. Her books include 100 Sleeps to Go (Picture Book of the Year 2013), Breakfast Buttocks, Join Us (Picture Book for Dutch Children’s Book Week 2018) and With You, a wonderful story about seasons and friendship. In 2016 she received a Silver Paintbrush award for Because I Love You So Much. She has also published two self-illustrated poetry collections: Close and I See You. Her latest picture book The Overeager Egg, about a curious little egg, has also been published in English, German, Korean, French and Persian.
Milja Praagman’s picture books reveal a subtle sense of humour, which also appeals to the parents who are reading them out loud. Her stories, her fresh and distinctive graphic style and her colorful and naive pictures are an ode to the imagination.