Tonya Engel

TONYA ENGEL is a self-taught painter and children's book illustrator, including the pictures for Our Lady of Guadalupe and the jacket art for Hurricane Child. Her work is inspired by southern folk artists. Early in her career she explored abstract painting, but soon began to concentrate on figurative form mixed with emotion and expressionistic narrative. This art style was the perfect complement to Maya Angelou's lyrical storytelling. Engel lives in Houston, Texas.

Books by This Illustrator

Rise! From Caged Bird to Poetry of the People, Maya Angelou

Maya Angelou holding a book and an open cage. A bird is flying away.

By: Bethany Hegedus

Illustrated by: Tonya Engel

Age Level: Middle Grade (9-14)

Writer, activist, trolley car conductor, dancer, mother, and humanitarian Maya Angelou's life was marked by transformation and perseverance. In this comprehensive picture-book biography geared towards older readers, Bethany Hegedus lyrically traces Maya's life from her early days in Stamps, Arkansas through her work as a freedom fighter to her triumphant rise as a poet of the people.