Pete the Cat and the New Guy

Kimberly Dean

Kimberly Dean is a children’s author, artist, and yoga enthusiast best known as a NYT bestselling author and co-parent of children’s book character Pete the Cat. Before fulfilling her dream of becoming a full-time author and artist, she worked for the State of Georgia, leaving the Governor’s Press Office in 1998 to pursue her art.



Kimberly lives in Savannah with her dog, Gypsy, and cat, Phoebe. Her children and grandchildren live nearby, and her favorite word is ""Lovie,"" which is the name her grandchildren lovingly call her.



James Dean

James Dean is the original creator and illustrator of Pete the Cat. He is a self-taught artist originally from Fort Payne, Alabama. His passion for drawing became apparent at a young age, and as a child, you could find James drawing his favorite characters like Snoopy and Yogi Bear.



James earned his degree in electrical engineering from Auburn University and went on to work for Georgia Power for a number of years. Eventually, he was called to pursue his art full-time and began selling his work at art festivals around the Southeast.



James Dean’s art has been sold in more than ninety galleries and shops across the United States. He has devoted his paintings to Pete the Cat for fifteen years and turned his natural love for cats into his life’s work. James published his first book, The Misadventures of Pete the Cat, a history of his artwork, in 2006, and he illustrated his first self-published children’s book, Pete the Cat: I Love My White Shoes, in 2008. There are now almost 100 published Pete the Cat titles with more coming out all the time.