Jilanne Hoffmann is an engineer-turned-author, originally from the Midwest, who fell in love with San Francisco, “the City by the Bay,” and made it her home. She has sailed around the Bay (known for its blustery winds, strong tidal currents, and billowing fog), ridden her bike across the Golden Gate Bridge, explored the city’s waterfront, and tiptoed above the silent skeletons of at least forty wooden ships buried beneath San Francisco’s streets. These mysterious ships sparked Jilanne’s initial desire to write about the Gold Rush, and as she learned more, it became clear that the early boomtown would make the perfect setting for a tale of survival for a pair of resourceful, orphaned children. Jilanne is the awardwinning author of the picture books A River of Dust: The Life-Giving Link Between North Africa and the Amazon (2023), The Ocean’s Heart: The Tiny Creatures Essential to Life (March 2026), and the middle grade novel in verse and prose, HeartLand ( July 2026). Jilanne reviews picture books on her blog and offers mini recommendations for middle grade novels on Instagram, Facebook, and Bluesky. She lives in the Bay Area with her husband, son, and rescue dog (who loves cheese, but is not named Cheese). Find links to her books, blog, interviews, and social media handles here: linktr.ee/JilanneHoffmann.
