There are two artists whose work has particularly inspired the Animal Rescue Team. The first is Beverly Cleary. From time to time, I reread the books I loved as a kid. Beverly Cleary’s stories are filled with gentle humor, great comic timing and vivid scenes and characters. The second is Trina Schart Hyman. More than ten years ago, I fell in love with her illustrations of the folktale Bearskin. As Peter Glassman writes, “In her illustrations, we are introduced to a fairy-tale kingdom in which people of different races live, love, work and play together.” I share the vision that we all belong to the human race. To see that vision reflected in a children’s book was very powerful for me.