Chris Soentpiet is a Korean American children's book illustrator and author. He was born in Seoul, South Korea, in 1970. At age 8, he moved to Hawaii to live with his adoptive family. A year later, the Soentpiets relocated to Portland, Oregon. Soentpiet currently lives and works in New York City. Around Town, a picture book written and illustrated by Soentpiet, marked the artist's debut in 1994. Today, Soentpiet is recognized as an award-winning illustrator in the children's book industry. His books have received numerous honors, including, but not limited to, the International Reading Association Teachers' Choice Award, NAACP Image Award, Parents' Choice Gold Award, Parents Magazine Best Children's Book of the Year, North Carolina Children's Book Award, Georgia Children's Picture Book Award, International Reading Association Notable Children's Book for a Global Society, and ALA Notable Book. Soentpiet is active on the school visit circuit. Soentpiet's research for the picture chapter book Peacebound Trains took him back to his country of birth, South Korea, for the first time since his adoption in 1978. 

January 3rd, 1970 in Seoul (Age 54)