Footballing Fairy

Elli Woollard grew up in central London, and lives just a few streets away from her childhood home. Slightly more excitingly, she also lived for seven years in Thailand. A graduate in social anthropology (with a bit of Burmese language, now largely forgotten, thrown in for good measure), she has worked variously as a teacher of English as a foreign language, a copywriter, an editor and a freelance Thai-to-English translator. Although she has always written bits and pieces, she got into writing seriously following a mortifying incident in which her youngest son broke Michael Rosen's glasses. In addition to writing picture books she also writes children's poems. Elli lives with her four crazy but wonderful children, her meteorologist husband and two guinea pigs. She does not live with a cat, although the neighbour's moggy ('Six Dinner Sid's Sister') seems to think otherwise.Irina Avgustinovich has illustrated more than 50 books for children. Originally from Belarus, she emigrated to Portugal with her family when war against Ukraine broke out. She currently lives in Stubal, Portugal.