Laura Beth Dean

Laura Beth Dean’s non-fiction children’s picture book, Georgia Jipp: Blizzard Pilot, received several prestigious honors, particularly in the Western and nonfiction literary communities:

• 2025 Spur Award

Best Western Children’s Picture Book Presented by the Western Writers of America, this is one of the most prestigious honors for literature about the American West.

• Gold: Will Rogers Medallion Award

Western Young Reader/Non-fiction/Illustrated. The Will Rogers Medallion Award (WRMA) is one of the most prestigious honors celebrating literature of the American West.

• 2025 WILLA Literary Award

Best Children’s Picture Book Awarded by Women Writing the West, celebrating outstanding writing by women authors in the Western genre.

• Bronze Medal – 2024 Moonbeam Children’s Book Awards

Best Illustrator Jeanne Bowman was recognized for her exceptional artwork in the book.

Laura was born in Cooperstown, New York. When she was two months old, her parents took her on her first flight to Brazil. After her adventuresome childhood in five countries and four continents, she earned a B.S. in Nursing before settling down with her husband and three children in the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia. She works as a nurse by day and as a writer on the weekends. She hopes to publish more award-winning books for children.