Abi Cushman
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abicushman.com
Abi Cushman
@abicushman.com
2.2K followers 2.2K following 260 posts
Kidlit Author/Illustrator
☔️ SOAKED!
🚗 ANIMALS GO VROOM!
🐻 WOMBATS ARE PRETTY WEIRD
🦩 FLAMINGOS ARE PRETTY FUNKY
🐹 THE QUIET FOREST
https://www.abicushman.com | Newsletter: https://www.abicushman.com/join-my-email-list
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Happy #KidLitArtPostcard Day! Here's a sneak peek at THE QUIET OCEAN (written by Charlotte Offsay, ill. by me), coming out May 5 from Beach Lane Books.

I love illustrating funny kids' books and expressive animals.

Portfolio: abicushman.com
Rep: Kendra Marcus / BookStop Lit

#kidlitart #kidlit
Mama and baby whale kissing. Abi Cushman - Author-Illustrator, abicushman.com
January 8, 2026 at 4:36 PM
abicushman.com
I had a very busy 2025 drawing lots of cute and funny animals! Here are a few bits from books coming out in 2026 and beyond. Can't wait to share more!

🐡 The Quiet Ocean: May 5, 2026
🐧 Penguins Don't Wear Pants: Fall 2026

#artvartist #artvartist2025
Illustrator Abi Cushman (center), various illustrations surrounding: Whale and whale calf kissing, penguin in pants, The Quiet Ocean cover, dapper penguin in pants, pufferfish scaring squid in bathtub, penguins looking up at sky, scared dolphin in bike helmet, cat and bobcat snuggling.
January 1, 2026 at 11:25 PM
abicushman.com
If you've ever been curious about how fortune cookies came to be, then may I suggest: FORTUNE COOKIES FOR EVERYONE by @pragmaticmom.bsky.social and @kongsavage.bsky.social! It's beautifully written and illustrated, and there were a lot of things that surprised me. Check it out! 🥠

#kidlit
Cover of Fortune Cookies for Everyone: The Surprising Story of the Tasty Treat We Love to Eat. Grandma and grandkids with bowl of fortune cookies sitting outside.
December 10, 2025 at 3:51 PM
abicushman.com
Happy #KidLitArtPostcard Day! Here's a sneak peek at a scene from PENGUINS DON'T WEAR PANTS, coming out Fall 2026 from Greenwillow.

I love illustrating funny kids' books, expressive animals, and penguins on toilets.

Portfolio: abicushman.com
Rep: Kendra Marcus / BookStop Lit

#kidlitart #kidlit
Scene from Penguins Don't Wear Pants by Abi Cushman: 4 penguins looking up at sky as an asteroid approaches.
December 4, 2025 at 3:31 PM
abicushman.com
If you see this, post your bird art 🐦

(This is from my book, Flamingos Are Pretty Funky, describing flamingos' bright red crop milk and the fact that flamingo parents lose their pink coloring when they're raising chicks.)

#flamingos #birds
Flamingo with bright red crop milk coming out of their mouth. Scene from Flamingos Are Pretty Funky by Abi Cushman
November 10, 2025 at 10:44 PM
abicushman.com
Hello #KidlitArtPostcard! I'm Abi Cushman, and I love illustrating stories with funny animal characters.

I'm represented by Kendra Marcus at BookStop Literary Agency.

Portfolio: abicushman.com

#kidlit #kidlitart
Illustration by Abi Cushman of Bear hula hooping in puddle. Scene from Soaked!
November 6, 2025 at 8:40 PM
abicushman.com
In THE TRAVELING TACO by @pragmaticmom.bsky.social and #KimberlieClinthorneWong, kids can learn about where some of their favorite foods came from (not just tacos). I love that it's very browsable with bright, bold illustrations & bite-sized pieces of text. 😍🌮

@redcometpressbooks.bsky.social
Book cover of The Traveling Taco: The Amazing & Surprising Journey of Many of Your Favorite Foods by Mia Wenjen and Kimberlie Clinthorne-Wong. Various food illustrated: ice cream, pasta, french fries, tacos, fish, onion, shrimp, orange Interior spread of The Traveling Taco book. Illustrations and text about where ice cream came from.
November 4, 2025 at 2:16 AM
abicushman.com
So excited to share the cover of THE QUIET OCEAN (words by Charlotte Offsay, pictures by me)! Splashing onto shelves on May 5, 2026 from @simonkids.bsky.social / @ssedlib.bsky.social.

🐠 Pre-order: abicushman.com/books/the-qu...

#coverreveal #kidlitart
Cover of The Quiet Ocean by Charlotte Offsay and Abi Cushman. Pufferfish in ocean surrounded by dolphin, whale, squid, turtle, and shark.
October 23, 2025 at 10:52 PM
abicushman.com
Everyone! Check out @jerroldconnors.bsky.social's BIG RHINOCEROS, LITTLE RHINOCEROS! It has really inventive flaps, adorable illustrations, and a heartwarming storyline about a baby rhino and parent encountering a scary sound.

It's so clever & also has that simple, classic feel. ❤️ 🦏

#kidlitart
Big Rhinoceros, Little Rhinoceros book cover by Jerrold Connors. Big orange rhino on left and little yellow rhino on right. Interior of Big Rhinoceros, Little Rhinoceros by Jerrold Connors. Red background with orange bigger rhino behind smaller yellow rhino. Yellow rhino is a flap. Interior spread of Big Rhinoceros, Little Rhinoceros by Jerrold Connors. Red background with orange bigger rhino. Smaller yellow rhino is on a flap that has been turned over.
October 14, 2025 at 8:14 PM
abicushman.com
I had the privilege of reading an advance copy of NUNU AND THE SEA by @isabellakung.bsky.social. I hope everyone gets a chance to read this when it comes out on 10/14. It's an absolutely beautiful book with breathtaking art. ❤️
Nunu and the Sea by Isabella Kung book cover: Girl with glasses in an origami boat
October 9, 2025 at 9:08 PM
abicushman.com
Happy Spooky #KidLitArtPostcard Day!

I am an author/illustrator and love drawing expressive animals.

Agent: Kendra Marcus / BookStop Literary
Portfolio: abicushman.com

#kidlit #kidlitart
Parent and child raccoon on rock pointing at moon reflection. Illustration by Abi Cushman.
October 2, 2025 at 3:11 PM
abicushman.com
Quote with your yellow art! 💛

(This is from my book, Animals Go Vroom!)

#kidlitart #childrensbooks
September 28, 2025 at 5:58 PM
abicushman.com
BOOK COVER ARTISTS

QRP with your book covers 📚

#kidlitart #childrensbooks #illustration
Bear with badger and bunny climbing on him under an umbrella. Cover of SOAKED! by Abi Cushman Three wombats standing close to one another with baby wombat in foreground. One wombat combing nose hair and holding mirror. Cover of WOMBATS ARE PRETTY WEIRD by Abi Cushman Mouse on rock, deer, moose, bunny, bear in background in forest. Cover of THE QUIET FOREST by Charlotte Offsay, illustrated by Abi Cushman Two snakes in a yellow car. Cover of ANIMALS GO VROOM! by Abi Cushman
September 26, 2025 at 6:29 PM
abicushman.com
Artists! Quote with your night art!

#kidlitart #illustration
Parent raccoon and kid raccoon in a boat with the moon reflecting on the water. Kid raccoon has net to try to catch the reflection. Art by Abi Cushman.
September 19, 2025 at 5:15 PM
abicushman.com
Happy #KidLitArtPostcard Day!

I am an author/illustrator and love drawing expressive animals. This is from a scene in a book coming out next summer called THE QUIET OCEAN (written by Charlotte Offsay).

Agent: Kendra Marcus / BookStop Literary
Portfolio: abicushman.com

#kidlit #kidlitart
Illustration by Abi Cushman showing a whale calf swimming in a sunbeam
September 4, 2025 at 12:41 PM
abicushman.com
All of @hopelim.bsky.social's books are seemingly simple, but they make you feel and think. AT THE WINDOW, illustrated beautifully by #QinLeng, is about a girl seeing her neighbor at her big apartment window everyday. It is a sweet story that challenges you to see things from a new perspective.
AT THE WINDOW book cover by Hope Lim and Qin Leng. A girl walking her dog past a neighbor at her window. Three panels showing a girl walking her dog past her neighbor's empty apartment. The girls sees a For Sale sign.
September 3, 2025 at 7:29 PM
abicushman.com
TOMATOES ON TRIAL by @lindsayhmetcalf.bsky.social & #EdwinFotheringham is about the Supreme Court case that decided whether a tomato was a fruit or vegetable. And it is FUN! Cheeky text and humorous illustrations make this book a treat to read.
Tomatoes on Trial: The Fruit v. Vegetable Showdown picture book cover written by Lindsay H. Metcalf and illustrated by Edwin Fotheringham. Illustration of a man in a courtroom giving arguments about why tomatoes are fruits not vegetables from the book Tomatoes on Trial by Lindsay H. Metcalf and Edwin Fotheringham.
September 3, 2025 at 6:49 PM
abicushman.com
NO WORLD TOO BIG, edited by @lindsayhmetcalf.bsky.social, @keilavdawson.bsky.social & @jbradley.bsky.social is such an empowering book! Through poems and beautiful illustrations, it showcases the many ways kids around the world are making a difference in their own communities and beyond. 😍🌎
No World Too Big: Young People Fighting Global Climate Change book cover - Three children holding up the world.
May 30, 2025 at 6:09 PM
abicushman.com
I loved GIANT RAYS OF HOPE by @patricianewman.bsky.social. So many layers to this book about giant manta rays and the people trying to protect them. It lays out real conservation solutions and shows kids making a difference in their communities. Very empowering and inspirational! #schoollibrarians
Giant Rays of Hope: Protecting Manta Rays to Safeguard the Sea book cover featuring giant manta ray
May 28, 2025 at 2:31 PM
abicushman.com
I will be presenting at the New England SCBWI Conference in May. I hope you'll join me for a weekend of kidlit craft and camaraderie. Registration is open now: www.scbwi.org/events/2025-...

@newenglandscbwi.bsky.social #kidlit
NESCBWI Spring Conference 2025: May 16-18, 2025, Stamford, CT. Illustration of raccoon, deer, fox, and bear looking at egg. (Artwork by Bridget Bick)
March 2, 2025 at 9:22 PM
abicushman.com
PIGS DIG A ROAD: Another winner from @carriefinison.bsky.social! Love the rollicking rhyming text and the fun, hilarious illustrations from #BrianBiggs.
Cover of Pigs Dig a Road by Carrie Finison and Brian Biggs. Four pigs doing construction. Interior spread of Pigs Dig a Road. Construction pigs are painting the lines on a road.
February 27, 2025 at 5:19 PM
abicushman.com
Yes, it's true! Something Really Bad happens when penguins wear pants. So of course there are no penguins in pants in my upcoming picture book, PENGUINS DON'T WEAR PANTS. Right?

Waddling your way in Fall 2026 from Greenwillow Books / @harperkids.bsky.social. #kidlit
New Book Deal! Virginia Duncan at Greenwillow has acquired world rights to Penguins Don't Wear Pants by Abi Cushman, a humorous picture book alerting readers to the fact that something really bad happens when penguins wear pants. Publication is set for fall 2026; Kendra Marcus at BookStop Literary Agency negotiated the deal. Penguin standing by rocks.
February 14, 2025 at 2:16 AM
abicushman.com
Funny #picturebook Alert! Narrated like a sports announcer doing a play-by-play, BOXER BABY BATTLES BEDTIME by @pragmaticmom.bsky.social and #KaiGietzen is such a fun story to read aloud. Hilarious and relatable for anyone who has tried putting a baby down for a nap. Highly recommend!
Cover of Boxer Baby Battles Bedtime by Mia Wenjen and Kai Gietzen. Features baby in boxing outfit with fist in air. Baby entering the room wearing boxing outfit. Baby rocking wildly on rocking horse
February 4, 2025 at 10:14 PM
abicushman.com
Hi Brian, I love drawing expressive animals. Here are a few images, and my portfolio is at abicushman.com.
Flamingos at nests Greater and Lesser Flamingos Mouse splatting into pancakes and rabbit Badger under umbrella
January 22, 2025 at 5:14 AM
abicushman.com
So many hilarious twists and turns in this graphic-novel style picture book, GEODUCK IS NOT A DUCK, by #CandyWellins and @elliepeterson.bsky.social. I learned what a geoduck is in a really fun way. Loved the illustrations!
Book Cover: A GEODUCK IS NOT A DUCK: A Story of a Unique Pacific Northewest Mollusk by Candy Wellins and Ellie Peterson. Comic panels of a sea star reporter and crab.
December 29, 2024 at 7:41 PM