Hélène Desputeaux facts for kids

Hélène Desputeaux is a talented Canadian artist, writer, and teacher from Quebec. She was born on July 10, 1959. She is best known for helping create the popular children's character, Caillou. Working with writer Christine L'Heureux, Hélène Desputeaux brought Caillou to life. Caillou has appeared in many children's books and a well-known television show.

Hélène Desputeaux's Career

Hélène Desputeaux has created more than 100 books for children. Her work is very popular and well-loved. In 1995, she received a special award called the Médaille Raymond-Blais. This award recognized all the amazing books she had created.

Caillou Character Ownership

Hélène Desputeaux and the book publisher, Éditions Chouette, had a disagreement. They went to court to decide who owned the Caillou character. A special judge first decided that they both owned the character together.

Later, a higher court changed this decision. But then, the highest court in Canada, the Supreme Court, looked at the case. They decided that the first judge's decision was correct. This meant that Hélène Desputeaux and the publisher shared ownership of Caillou.

Famous Books by Hélène Desputeaux

Hélène Desputeaux has illustrated many popular children's books. Here are some of her well-known works:

• The Emperor's New Clothes (1984), based on a story by Hans Christian Andersen
• Purple, Green, and Yellow (1992), with text by Robert Munsch
• Caillou, la petite soeur and Caillou, le petit pot, with text by Joceline Sanschagrin. These books won the Mr. Christie's Book Award in 1993.
• Where is Gah-Ning? (1994), with text by Robert Munsch

Hélène Desputeaux's Family Life

Hélène Desputeaux is married to Michel Aubin. He is also a children's author. They have two daughters together.