Platypus Media

Platypus Media was founded in 2000 by owner and publisher Dia L. Michels, an award-winning author of books in women’s health and early childhood education. Our authors are respected experts in their fields, regularly quoted in international media and print publications, and are sought-after speakers at conferences worldwide.

​Platypus Media’s goals are relatively simple. We want to educate grown-ups and children about the world around them. We publish books that foster warmth, closeness, literacy, curiosity, and an openness to other cultures. We bring products to the market that parents love, children enjoy, teachers appreciate, and parenting professionals value.

To ensure our books reach as many readers as possible, including those who have limited resources, we translate all of our books into Spanish-language or bilingual English/Spanish. We also have books in Haitian-Creole, Hebrew, Korean, Dutch, and Bengali. We often partner with literacy programs that provide books at discounted costs to under-served students.

Our free, supplemental educational resources give educators tools to help kids make connections between the blackboard and the blacktop. The content of our Teacher’s Guides supports the Common Core State Standards.

We are especially proud that others feel that we are meeting our mission. As the well-respected pediatrician, Dr. William Sears, says: Platypus Media’s books not only promote literacy, they promote families!