Roda Ahmed

Author and Founder

Roda was born in Hargaisa, Somalia  and moved to Norway with her family and seven siblings. A graduate  in Anthropology from the Norwegian University of Technology and Natural Sciences, Roda has also mastered five languages; Somali, Arabic, Norwegian, English and French.

In 2008 Roda’s debut novel, “Forberedelsen” (The Preparation), became a bestseller in Norway. It was published by Gyldendal Norsk Forlag - one of the most respected publishing houses in the country.  Roda is a recipient of a writing scholarship from  “Fritt Ord” (Norway's The Free Speech Foundation).

Ahmed was a regular columnist for the Norwegian National newspaper, Dagsavisen and is releasing her first children’s book “Mae Among the Stars” in 2018 with Harper Collins. “Mae Among the Stars” is inspired by the story of Mae Jemison, the first African American woman to travel into space.

Roda Ahmed founded HighTree publishing after noticing a lack of diversity in the world of children’s literature. Her wish is to inspire both children and parents of different nationalities and skin colors with stories that reflect them and honor them.

HighTree publishing is planting books for future generations.

Jakob Haglof

Design Director

With nearly two decades of experience in art and design, his work has taken the form of user interfaces, video games, print work and album covers, as well as music videos and animation for clients including Atlantic, Sony and Lifetime.

With Hightree, Jakob will help coordinate and edit the work of each book’s illustrators and finalize each for printing.