About the Author/Illustrator
Monique Duncan – Author | Educator | Literacy Advocate
Monique Duncan is an award-winning author, educator, and researcher with a deep passion for literacy and culturally rooted storytelling. She has published three celebrated picture books for children and brings over 22 years of experience in education, supporting young readers and writers alike.
Her most recent title, Freedom Braids, was traditionally published and has garnered national recognition. The book was featured in The New York Times, Oprah Daily, ABC News, The Horn Book, and was endorsed by Amnesty International as “a vivid story of friendship, solidarity, and freedom.” It was a 2025 Jane Addams Children’s Book Award finalist and received accolades from:
Her second book, When Mama Braids My Hair, was nominated for an Ezra Jack Keats Award and selected for the Cooperative Children’s Book Center’s 2019 Best-of-the-Year List. It was also featured on PBS’s Let’s Learn series. Her debut, D is for Dragon Fruit, received Honorable Mention from the New York Book Festival.
Born and raised in White Plains, NY, Monique has always loved storytelling and drawing. She holds an MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from the Vermont College of Fine Arts, an MA in Childhood Education from Iona University, and a BA in Journalism from Temple University.
She lives in the Bronx, NY, where she continues to teach, write, and empower children through stories that reflect love, liberation, and legacy.
Monique Duncan – Author | Educator | Literacy Advocate
Monique Duncan is an award-winning author, educator, and researcher with a deep passion for literacy and culturally rooted storytelling. She has published three celebrated picture books for children and brings over 22 years of experience in education, supporting young readers and writers alike.
Her most recent title, Freedom Braids, was traditionally published and has garnered national recognition. The book was featured in The New York Times, Oprah Daily, ABC News, The Horn Book, and was endorsed by Amnesty International as “a vivid story of friendship, solidarity, and freedom.” It was a 2025 Jane Addams Children’s Book Award finalist and received accolades from:
- Oprah Daily – Best Kids Books on Race and Racism 2024
- Black KidLit Awards – Best Historical Book Winner 2024
- Cybils Awards – Finalist, Best Fiction Picture Book 2024
- Bookstagang – Best Picture Books of 2024
- Children’s Book Council – Hot Off The Press, September 2024
- Bank Street College – Best Children’s Books of the Year 2025
- A Just Imagine Book Breeze Pick – October 2024
Her second book, When Mama Braids My Hair, was nominated for an Ezra Jack Keats Award and selected for the Cooperative Children’s Book Center’s 2019 Best-of-the-Year List. It was also featured on PBS’s Let’s Learn series. Her debut, D is for Dragon Fruit, received Honorable Mention from the New York Book Festival.
Born and raised in White Plains, NY, Monique has always loved storytelling and drawing. She holds an MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from the Vermont College of Fine Arts, an MA in Childhood Education from Iona University, and a BA in Journalism from Temple University.
She lives in the Bronx, NY, where she continues to teach, write, and empower children through stories that reflect love, liberation, and legacy.