Julia Donaldson is the author of some of the world's best-loved children's books, including modern classics The Gruffalo and The Gruffalo's Child, which together have sold over 17 million copies worldwide, and the hugely successful What the Ladybird Heard adventures. Julia also writes fiction, including the Princess Mirror-Belle books illustrated by Lydia Monks, as well as poems, plays and songs - and her brilliant live shows are always in demand. She was Children's Laureate 2011-13 and has been honoured with a CBE for Services to Literature. Julia and her husband Malcolm divide their time between West Sussex and Edinburgh. Karen George has always loved drawing and painting - as a child it was her absolute favourite thing to do. A graduate of the Royal College of Art, Karen used to paint sets for films, but turned her creative attention to picture book illustration after becoming mother to her two young sons. In 2009, Karen won the inaugural Waterstones' Picture This competition. She then went on to illustrate two Julia Donaldson's stories, Freddie and the Fairy and Wake up Do, Lydia Lou. She now writes her own stories as well as illustrating, and lives in Bristol, England with her family and Dr Calamari the cat.