John Kilaka (born 4 November 1966 in Sumbawanga, southwest Tanzania) is a Tanzanian writer and illustrator, best known as a creator of children's picture books.
[1] Kilaka is an artist, storyteller and enthusiast when it comes to the collecting of old traditions and stories.
When Kilaka was young he always painted and soon realized that he needed to make his way to Dar es Salaam for an education.
It was a big international success as well as True Friends which received the New Horizon award[clarification needed] at the 2004 Bologna Children's Book Fair.
[2] His latest book is The Amazing Tree (2009), which was translated to many languages, e.g. Swedish by Britt Isaksson under the title Förtrollad frukt.