Jane Matthews – Illustratör

Aubrey is a rambunctious boy who tries to run before he can walk and has crashed two cars before he is old enough to drive one. But when his father, Jim, falls under the horrendous spell of the Terrible Yoot, everything changes. With the help of the creatures of Rushing Wood Aubrey sets out to break the spell. Everyone says his task is impossible, but Aubrey will never give up, even if he must fight the unkillable spirit of despair – The Terrible Yoot – itself!Funny and fearless, Aubrey and the Terrible Yoot is a modern-day fable that mixes real family life with fantastical woodland creatures and a more than a touch of myth and mystery, to tackle the theme of depression head on, complemented by powerful line drawings by illustrator Jane Matthews.

The ladybirdz arrive in Woodside Terrace, and Aubrey's Easter holidays get complicated. Ariadne the spider asks Aubrey to help. Something Must Be Done, but first Aubrey sucks the swallow stone which makes him small enough for daring flights on the back of Hirundo the Swallow and amazing adventures in the Web of Time and Space. Add in Bernardo the bee, Eric the earthworm and a whole conference of ravens, and you have the start of an epic tale in which a small boy and a house spider try to save the world!

When the animals start rebelling, and Aubrey is stung by a very polite wasp, he realises there is something weird going on in the valley below Rushing Wood. And as he’s the only boy he knows of who can talk with animals, he is determined to find out what. With help from his friends Ariadne the house spider, Silvio the silverfish and Lupo the Huskey pup, the young warrior sets out to find the terrible Terrible Spiders and their genius creator Big B and, just maybe, save the world.