About the Author and Illustrator
of Rollo: A Lowcountry Puppy’s Tale
Illustrator Hilda Stark and author Adrienne Love have been lifelong friends since high school!
Author Adrienne Love
“When we are sad or struggling, animals can bring us back to life, and sometimes they literally save us.”
Adrienne Love and Rollo
Adrienne Love is a resident of Mount Pleasant, South Carolina. She was born in West Palm Beach, Florida, but was raised in the Northeast, primarily in New York City. She began her career as a clinical marketing specialist for a biotech company in West Palm Beach, Florida, and then moved to Charlotte, North Carolina after she was promoted. Here she met her husband, and they raised their only child, a son. They acquired their first Cavalier King Charles spaniel, Riley, when Clayton was 7. She and her family eventually moved to Isle of Palms, South Carolina.
Rollo was born in Mount Pleasant and lives a “life of Riley” with Adrienne to this day.
Adrienne enjoys living near the ocean and was inspired to write this book after losing her beloved Riley. She turned to one of her oldest and dearest friends, Hilda Stark, to create the illustrations for Rollo: A Lowcountry Puppy’s Tale.
“Hilda’s gorgeous illustrations epitomize the heart and soul of my book.”
Illustrator Hilda Stark
“When my childhood friend, author Adrienne Love, asked me to illustrate Rollo: A Lowcountry Puppy’s Tale, it was more than a collaboration; it was a renewal of friendship and a labor of love. ”
Hilda Stark
Hilda Stark is a fine artist, book illustrator, college professor, and Emmy Award-winning production designer for film and television. She studied art at the Central School of Art in London, Skidmore College, and New York University Tisch School of the Arts, where she earned her MFA in Set Design. After raising her daughter and three Cavalier King Charles spaniels in Los Angeles, she returned to New York City where she continues to design, make art, and paint portraits on commission.
Hilda’s work as a theatrical designer and as a storyboard artist for movies fueled her love of the visual narrative in unexpected ways, and her art is a reflection of that journey.
Hilda may be contacted at Hilda.R.Stark.Art@gmail.com.