Erin E. Stead (born December 27, 1982) is an American illustrator of children's books. She won the 2011 Caldecott Medal for the year's best-illustrated U.S. picture book, recognizing her first publication, A Sick Day for Amos McGee.
Stead was born in Farmington Hills, Michigan, and met her husband, Philip Christian Stead in art class at Divine Child High School in Dearborn, Michigan. They married in September 2005 and moved to New York City, where he worked at the Brooklyn Children's Museum. She worked at Books of Wonder bookstore and as an assistant to the creative director at HarperCollins Children's Books. After moving back to Ann Arbor they collaborated on A Sick Day for Amos McGee, about the day a zookeeper stays home because he is sick. It was his second book and her first. Philip wrote characters he felt would work for Erin to illustrate. She used wood blocks for color work and pencil lines for detailing. Amos McGee was edited by Neal Porter at Roaring Brooks Press and named one of the "10 Best Illustrated Children's Books" for 2010 by The New York Times.
Stead's second book, And Then It's Spring, written by Julie Fogliano (Neal Porter, 2012), 2012 Boston GlobeâÂÂHorn Book Award Picture Book Honor winner.
The Steads live in Ann Arbor, Michigan, where he teaches at Washtenaw Community College.
Erin E. Stead has illustrated books by other writers. Most of her works are picture books published by Roaring Brook Press of New York City under the imprint Neal Porter Books. Porter had previously handled Philip Stead's debut book.