Brett Helquist facts for kids

Brett L. Helquist is an American artist who draws pictures for books. He is most famous for his drawings in the popular children's book series, A Series of Unfortunate Events. His artwork for this series can be seen in the books themselves, on the covers of audiobooks, and even on calendars. Helquist has illustrated almost 50 books. He studied art at Brigham Young University (BYU) and finished in 1993. After college, he moved to New York City. There, he worked as a graphic designer and also drew for newspapers and magazines. His illustrations have appeared in children's magazines and The New York Times.

About Brett Helquist

Brett Helquist was born in Ganado, Arizona, in 1965. He grew up in Orem, Utah, with his six sisters. He loved art and wanted to become an illustrator after reading comic strips in newspapers when he was a kid.

Helquist served as a missionary in Hong Kong before going to college. He earned a degree in fine arts from Brigham Young University in 1993. Before studying illustration, he was an engineering student. He took a year off from school to work in Taiwan, where he drew pictures for a textbook. This experience helped him decide to focus on illustration and visual arts. He worked closely with Utah artist and BYU professor Robert Barrett.

Helquist has lived in New York City since 1993. After graduating from BYU, he worked as an intern for illustrator Robert Neubecker. For six years, he was a graphic designer, drawing for magazines and newspapers in his free time. His work has been published in the children's magazine Cricket and in The New York Times.

In 2011, it was announced that Helquist would create new pictures for the Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark series by Alvin Schwartz. In August 2017, Helquist gave many of his early drawings for A Series of Unfortunate Events to BYU's Special Collections department. These drawings were shown at BYU until the end of September 2017.

In February 2019, Helquist was the main artist and speaker at the 37th annual Life, the Universe, & Everything science fiction and fantasy arts event. In 2024, a book he illustrated, The Mona Lisa Vanishes: A Legendary Painter, a Shocking Heist, and the Birth of a Global Celebrity, won the Sibert Medal. This award is given to the most outstanding informational book for children.

Brett Helquist's Books

Besides the 13 A Series of Unfortunate Events books, Brett Helquist has drawn pictures for nearly 50 other books. These include books for younger children and for middle schoolers. He has also written and illustrated some of his own books.

Children's Books

Middle Grade Books

Young Adult Books

Helquist also created new cover illustrations for a new printing of the Green Knowe series by Lucy M. Boston (Harcourt, 2002). The original inside pictures by the writer's son, Peter Boston, were kept.

• The Children of Green Knowe, ISBN: 0-15-202468-9
• The Treasure of Green Knowe, ISBN: 0-15-202601-0 (also known as The Chimneys of Green Knowe)
• The River at Green Knowe, ISBN: 0-15-202607-X
• A Stranger at Green Knowe, ISBN: 0-15-202589-8
• An Enemy at Green Knowe, ISBN: 0-15-202481-6
• The Stones of Green Knowe, ISBN: 0-15-205566-5

He also made new illustrations for a new printing of the Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark series by Alvin Schwartz (Harper & Row, 2011):

• Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark, ISBN: 978-0-397-31927-5
• More Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark, ISBN: 978-0-8124-4914-3
• Scary Stories 3: More Tales to Chill Your Bones, ISBN: 978-0-7607-3418-6

Helquist also wrote and illustrated some of his own books:

• Roger, the Jolly Pirate, ISBN: 0-06-623805-6, published in 2004
• Bedtime for Bear, ISBN: 0-060-50205-3, published in 2010
• Grumpy Goat, ISBN: 0-061-13953-X, published in 2013

See also

In Spanish: Brett Helquist para niños