Audrey Wood was born in Sarasota Florida. When Wood was two, her family moved to Mexico to study art. Wood and her three sisters were tutored in music, dance, painting, and drama. She decided at a young age that she wanted to create children's picture books. Wood is one of four generations of artists in her family, and the only female artist. Wood began writing children's books seriously when her son was two years old. Her first book, 24 Robbers, was published in 1978. Wood and her husband, Don collaborate on many of Wood's picture books. The first book the two did together was called Moonflute.
Don Wood was was born and raised on a farm in the great Central Valley of California. His family raised peaches, sweet potatos, almonds, grapes, and oranges. By the time Wood was in the sixth grade, he had forty acres of potatos to take care of by himself. During the summer, he and his brothers worked twelve to sixteen hour shifts, seven days a week. They were paid wages and were expected to pay for their own clothes and entertainment, and eventually, college educations. Wood knew by the sixth grade that he wanted to be an artist. Wood attended the University of California at Santa Barbara and did graduate work in art at the California College of Arts and Crafts. He was illustrating magazines when his wife Audrey decided to try her hand at writing children's picture books. They collaborated together on Moonflute and Wood enjoyed it so much that he has been illustrating kids books ever since.
