Lena Shiffman was born and raised in Sweden, a country rich in story-telling.

About her childhood she says: "I grew up reading the wonderful books about Pippi Longstocking, The Children of Noisy Village and many other books by Swedish author Astrid Lindgren. I can not remember when I didn't draw or paint. When I was seven, I was given a book of Hans Christian Andersen's Fairy Tales, and would spend hours creating my own pictures to the stories I read."

After moving to the USA, Lena attended Spectrum Institute of Commercial Art in NJ, and later studied at The Parsons School of Design and the Art Students League in New York City. She is a member of the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI).

Her first book was Keeping a Christmas Secret written by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor. It received a Christopher award in 1989. Since then Lena has illustrated My First Book of Words, and numerous Hello Readers for Scholastic Inc., including the book Dancing with Manatees, that has sold over half a million copies. Her latest books are When I lived with Bats and Playing with Dolphins, both written by Faith McNulty.

She enjoys visiting schools to share her passion for children's books. "I love being an illustrator and hope to be an inspiration to children, young and old who loves books just as much as I do." She is currently writing her first book, based on her Scandinavian roots.

Lena lives in Flemington, New Jersey, with her husband Brian, their daughter Emily and her cat Delilah.