William Steig (November 14, 1907 – October 3, 2003) was a prolific
American cartoonist, sculptor, and, late in life, an illustrator and writer of popular
children's books. Best known for the
picture books Sylvester and the Magic Pebble,
Abel's Island, and
Doctor De Soto, he was also the creator of
Shrek!, which inspired the
film series of the same name. He was the U.S. nominee for both of the biennial, international
Hans Christian Andersen Awards, as a children's book illustrator in 1982 and a writer in 1988.