Mac Barnett is a bestselling author of award-winning books and stories for children and the new National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature.

During his two-year term as the National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature, Barnett will celebrate the children’s picture book through his platform, Behold, The Picture Book! Let’s Celebrate Stories We Can Feel, Hear, and See. Barnett will explore the deeply impactful ways picture books blend words and illustrations to create a uniquely powerful reading experience, one that is often the foundation for a lifetime of reading. Ultimately, Barnett will assert the picture book is a quintessential American art form and deserves its rightful place among the best American literature.