Ben Hatke's first graphic novel was Zita the Spacegirl. He has published comics stories in the Flight series as well as Flight Explorer. In addition to writing and drawing comics, he also paints in the naturalist tradition and, occasionally, performs one-man fire shows. Return of Zita the Spacegirl is his most recent entry in the New York Times Best-Selling Zita trilogy. Hatke lives and works in the Shenandoah Valley with his wife and their boisterous pack of daughters.