Chris Van Allsburg (born June 18, 1949) is an American writer and illustrator of children's books.

Van Allsburg and his family lived in an old farmhouse, but when he was three years old, they moved to a Grand Rapids home near an elementary school so that Chris was able to walk to class.

[5] Van Allsburg attended the College of Architecture and Design at the University of Michigan, which at that time included an art school.

At home, Van Allsburg began a series of sketches that his wife Lisa thought would be suitable for children's books.

His art has also been featured on the covers of an edition of C. S. Lewis's series The Chronicles of Narnia, published by HarperCollins in 1994, as well as in three children's books written by Mark Helprin.