Aviva M. Cantor grew up in Charlotte, North Carolina. She is a graduate of the University of Cincinnati, where she studied fashion design and journalism.
Since 2011, Aviva has worked as a copywriter. Her professional background includes editing, proofreading, e-commerce, branding, marketing, social media, fashion, advertising, and design.
Aviva is a competitive figure skater and part-time figure skating coach with a lifelong passion for the sport. If she’s not writing or figure skating, Aviva is probably knitting, cooking, playing poker, or listening to a true-crime podcast. She resides in Pleasant Gap, Pennsylvania, with her wife, Melissa, and their pets.
Aviva’s older brother, Jeremy, had cerebral palsy and was mentally and physically disabled. As a kid, Aviva had only one book featuring a person in a wheelchair. She cherished that book and wished to see more families like hers depicted in children’s literature. Aviva wrote I Can Understand with a goal of bringing diversity to the children’s book landscape while helping readers have a better understanding of people with special needs.
Jeremy passed away on February 25, 2013, at the age of 41. His life was a blessing, and this book is an example of the positive impact that he had on his sister’s life and the lives of others.
