Viking Children’s Books Team
AZ Hackett is an Editorial Assistant at Viking Children’s Books, assisting Tamar Brazis and Jenny Bak. She began her publishing career as an editorial intern at Candlewick Press and a We Need Diverse Books grantee. In December of 2021, AZ graduated from Emerson College with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Creative Writing, with a…
Read MoreMeriam Metoui is an Assistant Editor who joined Viking Children’s Books in 2019 after several years in School & Library marketing (PYR) and adult editorial (Hachette). After graduating from the University of Michigan, she moved to New York and received a master’s degree in English literature from Hunter College. She considers herself a serial hobbyist…
Read MoreAneeka Kalia is an Associate Editor at Viking Children’s Books, where she primarily focuses on picture books and graphic novels for all ages. Aneeka also acquires middle grade and YA fiction, as well as select narrative nonfiction. Aneeka has worked with creators like Nidhi Chanani, Anoosha Syed, and Bianca Xunise. She looks for contemporary/realistic, humorous,…
Read MoreMaggie Rosenthal is an Editor at Viking, which she joined in 2014 with a certificate from the Columbia Publishing Course. After graduating as a Phi Beta Kappa from Kenyon College with a degree in Anthropology and a minor in English, she moved back to her hometown of New York City. She works on books for kids of…
Read MoreKelsey Murphy, editor at Philomel Books, joined Penguin Random House as an editor in 2018. She graduated from New York University with a degree in dramatic literature, film studies, and theater history, and a minor in creative writing. Kelsey edits picture books, middle grade, and young adult fiction and nonfiction, as well as select graphic novels.
Read MoreDana Leydig is Executive Editor at Viking Children’s Books. She began her publishing career as an intern for Puffin Books in 2008, and returned full-time in 2010 before moving to her current role at Viking in 2018. A graduate of the University of Florida (Go Gators!), she earned a degree in English with a minor…
Read MoreJenny Bak is Executive Editor at Viking Children’s, where she edits middle grade and young adult fiction, as well as the occasional picture book. She is drawn to stories at the intersection of commercial and literary, especially those with irresistible hooks, a swift pace, clever storytelling, unexpected twists, and authentic, diverse voices. In YA, she…
Read MoreTamar Brazis is the Associate Publisher of Viking Children’s Books where she specializes in picture books and illustrated fiction. She has acquired and edited Call Us What We Carry and Change Sings by #1 New York Times bestselling author and presidential inaugural poet Amanda Gorman, Tomatoes for Neela by Padma Lakshmi and Juana Martinez-Neal, and…
Read MoreKenneth Wright is the president and publisher of the Philomel Books and Viking Children’s Books imprints. After graduating with a BA in English from the University of Colorado at Boulder, he worked his way up the editorial ladder to become an editorial director at Scholastic in 2001. In 2006 he joined Writers House as a literary agent, where he represented many award-winning and bestselling creators, including the award-winning and New York Times bestselling authors Ruta Sepetys, Steve Sheinkin, and Deborah Heiligman.
Read More