Lourdes Heuer holds an MFA in writing from the Vermont College of Fine Arts and is an associate professor of English at Broward College in South Florida. She is the author of several books, including On This Airplane and Esme's Birthday Conga Line. Heuer grew up in a city apartment above a little toy shop before moving to South Florida, where she spent many of her summers making sandcastles on the shore of the Cape Florida Lighthouse of Key Biscayne. Lynnor Bontigao is an illustrator based in New Jersey. She is a recipient of the SCBWI Tomie dePaola Award. Bontigao is the author-illustrator of Sari-Sari Summers and the illustrator of The World's Best Class Plant by Audrey Vernick and Liz Garton Scanlon, At the End of the Day by Lisl H. Detlefsen, and Kailani's Gift by Dorina Lazo Gilmore-Young. Growing up in the Philippines, Bontigao encountered many monster storms and like the kids in Seashell Key, looked forward to the warm bright sun after.

"In both style and length, the writing is consistently child-friendly, with key narrative details conveyed in the energetic artwork...Sure to have young readers smiling."-- "Kirkus Reviews"

"Sweet watercolor and pencil illustrations combined with level-appropriate short sentences and detailed stories make these an excellent choice for kids ready to step up from simpler texts."-- "School Library Journal"

Publisher: Amulet Books

Pub date: 2026-03-10

Length: 80 pages