Vicki Riske

Vicki Riske, Author, Artist, Puppeteer, has been interested in puppetry and storytelling for many years. She created puppets for theatre productions at NDSU in Fargo. After graduation, Vicki produced a television show for Channel 4 in Fargo, “Owlwitness News with Olivia de Hoot and the Owlwitness News team.” Over the years Vicki worked in several theaters painting scenery, making props, crafts, and costumes. She worked in theaters in Fargo; Detroit; Ann Arbor; Boston and Tempe. Vicki was also involved in the commercial and film industry in Arizona working on numerous commercials, television productions and films; most famous being “Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure.” In the 90s she made a shift to Computer Graphics and worked for several years as an animator for Green Rabbit Design Studios. Following that she produced online instructional products for text books at Pearson. In 2014, Vicki traveled to China as an Artist in Residence for two international schools in Shanghai. She enabled K-5 grade students to create puppets and puppet shows. She writes and illustrates award winning children’s books. Her fourth book, Fishy Tales has been translated into Spanish by Sonia Elizabeth Urrutia de Soto, Los pececitos aventureros. These two books are about fish who love to swim, and play in the ocean. But encounter environmental problems in their water caused by plastic trash. This book is a great conversation starter for discussions on climate change and our responsibility to care for our planet earth. The Polka Dot Tea Party, is about finding shapes in nature, fun, and friendship. Phoenix artist Laura Best illustrated Grandma Bibi, a heartwarming story about shared memories and love. It tackles the difficulties of memory loss in older loved ones from a child’s perspective. Her third book, My Teeth Are Too Big, is about the challenges that come with change and how the magic of dreams can help us cope.