Katrina Elizabeth DiCamillo (born March 25, 1964) is an American children's fiction author. She has published over 25 novels, including Because of Winn-Dixie, The Tiger Rising, The Tale of Despereaux, The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane, The Magician's Elephant, the Mercy Watson series, and Flora & Ulysses. Her books have sold around 37 million copies. Four have been developed into films and two have been adapted into musical settings. Her works have won various awards; The Tale of Despereaux and Flora & Ulysses won the Newbery Medal, making DiCamillo one of six authors to have won two Newbery Medals. Born in Philadelphia, DiCamillo moved to Clermont, Florida, as a child, where she grew up. She earned an English degree from the University of Florida, Gainesville, and spent several years working entry-level jobs in Clermont before moving to Minneapolis, Minnesota, in 1994. In Minnesota, DiCamillo worked in a book warehouse and attempted to get a book published. Her first book to be accepted for publication was Because of Winn-Dixie, which was critically and commercially successful. DiCamillo then left her job to become a full-time author. From 2014 to 2015 DiCamillo was the American National Ambassador for Young People's Literature. She lives in Minneapolis and continues to write. Her most recent novel, The Beatryce Prophecy, was published in 2021. Early life and education Katrina Elizabeth DiCamillo was born on March 25, 1964, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to Betty Lee DiCamillo (), a teacher, and Adolph Louis DiCamillo, an orthodontist. DiCamillo has an older brother and had pet dogs as a child. She had chronic pneumonia as a child and was often hospitalized. In hopes of helping her sickness, the family moved to the warmer climate of Clermont, Florida, when Kate was five. Her father remained in Philadelphia with his business, but visited on occasion. Although he originally planned to move with the family after selling his practice, this never happened. DiCamillo was an avid reader as a child and often visited the local library. She later credited her mother for sparking her love for books. DiCamillo also often turned to reading when she was particularly sick with pneumonia and unable to do much else. She wanted to be a veterinarian until she was around ten. She was educated at public schools in the area beginning with Clermont Elementary, before entering Rollins College. DiCamillo left Rollins and worked for a time at Walt Disney