Author and Illustrator Discuss Their Creative Process

University School of Milwaukee Lower School students were treated to special visit by author Shari Swanson and illustrator Renée Graef. The two women collaborated on the new book “Gertie, the Darling Duck of WWII,” which tells the story of Gertie the duck, an unlikely beacon of hope in Milwaukee and the world amidst the uncertainty of war. 

Swanson, who also wrote “Hockey, the Dog Who Saved Abe Lincoln,” discussed how she gets ideas for her narrative nonfiction books, and the research she conducts related to establishing the setting for the book. “l look for story ideas that speak to community, to hope, and to people drawing together,” she said. 

Graef discussed her process for illustrating stories, including the research she does to draw the people, places, and events accurately for the time period. For “Gertie,” she was inspired by the classic book “Make Way for Ducklings” by Robert McCloskey, and visited the Milwaukee County Historical Society to research photographs of what Milwaukee—and the people who lived there—looked like in 1945. Graef has illustrated more than 90 books for children, including the Kirsten series in the American Girl collection and many of the "My First Little House" books by Laura Ingalls Wilder.

Many thanks to the USM Parents' Association, which supported Swanson’s and Graef’s visit.