Jeanne Birdsall is an American photographer and writer of children's books, renowned for her five-volume series about the Penderwick family. The first book in this cherished series, The Penderwicks, was awarded the 2005 National Book Award for Young People's Literature.

Birdsall spent her childhood in the suburbs west of Philadelphia, where she attended public schools and was inspired by several remarkable teachers. Among her favorites were Mrs. Corkhill, who encouraged her intellectual curiosity, Mr. Tremonte, who instilled a love for math, and Miss Basehore, to whom she and Mr. Penderwick are eternally grateful.

Originally deciding to become a writer at the age of ten, it wasn't until she reached the age of forty-one that she truly embarked on her writing career. In the interim years, Birdsall engaged in various unusual jobs and passionately pursued photography as an art form, with some of her photographs included in permanent collections.