OFELIA DUMAS LACHTMAN is a native of Los Angeles, California, where she still lives. She is the author of numerous bilingual children’s picture books, including Pepita and the Bully (Piñata Books, 2011), Tina and the Scarecrow Skins / Tina y las pieles de espantapájaros (Piñata Books, 2002), Big Enough / Bastante grande (Piñata Books, 1998), and the Pepita series: Pepita on Pepper Street / Pepita en la calle Pepper (Piñata Books, 2008), Pepita Packs Up / Pepita empaca (Piñata Books, 2005), Pepita Finds Out / Lo que Pepita descubre (Piñata Books, 2002), Pepita Takes Time / Pepita, siempre tarde (Piñata Books, 2000), Pepita Thinks Pink / Pepita y el color rosado (Piñata Books, 1998), and Pepita Talks Twice / Pepita habla dos veces (Piñata Books, 1995). Her novels for young adults include The Truth about Las Mariposas (Piñata Books, 2007), A Good Place for Maggie (Piñata Books, Spring 2002), The Summer of El Pintor (Piñata Books, 2001), Call Me Consuelo (Piñata Books, 1997), The Girl from Playa Blanca (Piñata Books, 1995), and Campfire Dreams (Harlequin, 1987), for which she won the Benjamin Franklin Award for best young adult novel. She has also written one adult novel, A Shell for Angela (Arte Público Press, 1995).
Like Pepita, the character she brought to life in vivid color on the pages of Pepita Talks Twice / Pepita habla dos veces (Piñata Books, 1995) and subsequent books in the Pepita series, ALEX PARDO DELANGE has walked the highway of assimilation between two cultures. Written by Ofelia Dumas Lachtman, Pepita Talks Twice / Pepita habla dos veces is a brightly illustrated bilingual picture book that tells the charming story of a little girl who learns the joy and value of speaking two languages and living within two cultures.
Born in Caracas, Venezuela, Pardo DeLange moved to Buenos Aires, Argentina, at the age of 15 where she finished high school. Later, she moved to the United States where she earned a degree in Fine Arts at the University of Miami. She started her career in art as a freelance artist for design and advertising agencies, but quickly made the move to illustrating books for children.
In addition to illustrating the six books in the Pepita Series, Pardo DeLange is also the illustrator of The Empanadas that Abuela Made / Las empanadas que hacía la abuela (Piñata Books, 2003); Tina and the Scarecrow Skins / Tina y las pieles de espantapájaros (Piñata Books, 2002); and Sip, Slurp, Soup Soup / Caldo, caldo, caldo (Piñata Books, 2002).
She now lives in Gainesville, Florida with her husband and three children.
