Mike Curato

About Mike Curato

Mike Curato is a Filipino-American writer and illustrator who grew up in the suburbs of New York City and was raised in the Catholic faith. He earned a BFA from Syracuse University and later moved to Seattle to work as a graphic designer before turning his attention fully to children's books. He now lives in Brooklyn.

Curato first built a following with Little Elliot, a five-book picture book series following a small, polka-dotted elephant navigating a big city. The debut title in the series won the Society of Illustrators' Founders Award and established Curato as a distinctive voice in children's illustration, known for gentle stories about kindness, friendship, and finding your place in the world.

Flamer

In 2020, Curato published Flamer, his debut graphic novel for young adult readers and a significant departure from his earlier picture books. Described by Curato as semi-autobiographical, the story follows Aiden Navarro through an anxious summer at scout camp, as bullying and an unexpected attraction to a fellow camper force him to confront a word—gay—that he has learned to fear. The book won the 2021 Lambda Literary Award for Children's and Young Adult Literature and was later named among Kirkus Reviews' best books of the century, praised for balancing humor and tenderness with an unflinching account of adolescent shame and self-acceptance. Curato returned to graphic memoir with the adult title Gaysians (2025), which won the 2026 Lambda Literary Award for LGBTQ+ Comics.

Why Flamer Has Been Challenged

Objections to Flamer center on its candid treatment of a young teenager's emerging sexuality, including scenes addressing puberty and body image alongside its central story of a boy questioning whether he is gay. Critics have also pointed to its bullying scenes and language as too mature for middle-grade readers, while supporters credit the book with giving rare, honest visibility to questioning adolescents. In the catalog tracked here, Curato's work has been challenged or banned in 10 states and 31 school districts.