From the time Brian Selznick was a young boy, it was clear that he had a gift for drawing. On his kindergarten report card, Brian's teacher noted that he was a good artist. At school Brian's classmates liked to gather around to see what he was sketching. During his childhood in New Jersey, Brian's parents encouraged him to take art classes. At the end of high school, Brian decided to attend art school instead of a traditional liberal arts college. Brian's father, an accountant, worried that his son wouldn't be able to make a living as an artist.