Helen Lester

Who is Helen Lester?

Helen Lester is an American children's writer, best known for her character Tacky the Penguin in many of her children's stories.

Lester was born in Evanston, Illinois but has moved around the United States making homes in New York City, San Francisco, Chicago, Minneapolis and finally settling in Pawling, New York with her husband.

As a girl, Lester dreamed of getting married but never of being a writer. She became an elementary school teacher, got married and had two sons. After her sons were born, Lester took time off as a teacher and began writing children's literature. Her works are mainly influenced by her old second-grade students who helped produced characters such as Tacky the Penguin, Pinkerton the Pig and Fragility the Hippopotamus.

Lester's first children's book was published in 1979 and her writing career took off from there. She has now published more than two dozen books.

Lester has also illustrated a few of her own books, but typically illustrator Lynn Munsinger has produced the illustration for Lester's books. Lester and Munsinger have collaborated on over a dozen children books.