Ashley writes and illustrates SEL picture books that are equal parts adventure and awe.

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Always a painter and crafter, Ashley Bray loved making art so much, she never stopped. She continued to create and take every art class she could while earning her BA in Spanish, BS in Psychology, and MA in Mental Health Counseling from Southern Oregon University.

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Ashley's work as a children’s therapist and mother have inspired her to write and illustrate picture books that grapple with big emotions. Ashley kept her childlike wonder of the world and it shows up in her work.

Her whimsical books welcome the next generation into the magical world of reading.

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From her own experience, Ashley knows that becoming a lover of reading can be tough.

As a child, she had extreme anxiety about most things, but especially about reading.

It was rediscovering picture books as an older child that helped her grow into a confident

and voracious reader.

Since then, picture books have held a special place in her heart and on her shelves.

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She now lives on a ranch in Northern California near Mt. Shasta with her family and their dogs,

cats, bunny, horse, cows, chickens, and lots and lots of goats. When she is not writing or illustrating,

she can be found working on daunting DIY projects, baking with her kids, gardening, or being nibbled by goats.

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