Bernard Waber was born in 1924 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and educated at the University of Pennsylvania. He also studied art at the Philadelphia College of Art and the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts. He wrote and illustrated numerous children's books including The House on East 88th Street, Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile, Lyle at Christmas, Ira Sleeps Over, and Ira Says Goodbye. He died on May 16, 2013.