Anastasia Ryzhkova – illustratör

Discover the inspiring story of Mikaela Shiffrin, a record-breaking alpine skier who battled tough times to become the very best.Mikaela grew up under a snowy mountain in Colorado, USA. Her family were all big fans of skiing and by the age of two she was already gliding all by herself, determined to beat her brother! This was to be a theme throughout Mikaela’s career as, inspired by skier Heidi Voelker’s message as a junior skier she added the acronym A.B.F.T.T.B to her helmet: ‘Always Be Faster Than The Boys’!Mikaela truly fell in love with skiing when at the age of just six she started training for slalom. She went to the Burke Mountain Academy, a top US ski school and at sixteen won her first World Cup trophy. Between 2013-2018, Mikaela broke many records and won two Olympic Golds – one at the Winter Olympics in Russia in 2014 and one at the Winter Olympics in South Korea in 2018.The Shiffrin family was very close – Mikaela’s mum was her coach, best friend and travel buddy, while her dad helped with her training and provided great emotional support. At the height of Mikaela’s success and fame her dad died following a tragic accident. Mikaela was devastated and considered giving up skiing. She persevered however and despite a tough Olympics in 2022, she went on to win her 100th World Cup race in 2025 at the age of 29. Considered the greatest skier of all time, Mikaela’s story is a thrilling ride of perseverance, discipline, and the pursuit of excellence. Today she works to help inspire the next generation of skiers, not only encouraging them to succeed and win, but to have fun and enjoy the ride. This inspiring and exhilarating book features stunning illustrations and extra facts at the back, including a biographical timeline with photos and a detailed profile of Mikaela's life. Little People, BIG DREAMS is a bestselling biography series for kids that explores the lives of outstanding people, from designers and artists to scientists and activists. All of them achieved incredible things, yet each began life as a child with a dream. This empowering series of books offers inspiring messages to children of all ages, in a range of formats. The board books are told in simple sentences, perfect for reading aloud to babies and toddlers. The hardback versions present expanded stories for beginning readers. With rewritten text for older children, the treasuries each bring together a multitude of dreamers in a single volume. You can also collect a selection of the books by theme in boxed gift sets. Activity books and a journal provide even more ways to make the lives of these role models accessible to children.