Then there’s a loud CRUNCH! from Very Near By. It sounds like the world’s largest rabbit, eating the world’s largest carrot. But of course it took AN INCREDIBLY LONG TIME to get from our rough and scruffy bedtime story to the finished book ( Rabbit’s Bad Habits, which was finally published this year with Jim Field’s amazing pictures). I had to get the story as good as I could get it, before my agent could look for a publisher, and get an award-winning, genius illustrator like Jim to bring it to life. And that took a couple of years, because I did it in my spare time. I was good at writing novels (and plays, and poems, and things like the ending to Minecraft, which I wrote for Notch): but I was still learning to write children’s books. At one point, a third friendly, boring animal arrived, just to give the illustrator something new to draw (she must have been getting bored too).

So my daughter and I started talking about how terrible the book was, and about how it could be better. Icebear has arrived in Rabbit and Bear’s valley, and he wants to be king. He’s big and scary, and the more kind and understanding the animals are, the meaner he becomes. From novelist and playwright Julian Gough, and the winner of the Roald Dahl Funny Prize, Jim Field, this is a story of friends, enemies, and how to avoid being pooped on by an icebear. Armistice Day: A Collection of Remembrance - Spark Interest and Educate Children about Historical Moments You couldn’t tell any of the animals apart: they all talked the same, and acted the same, and were nice and friendly to each other, until the book ended, or the reader died of boredom, whichever came first.The next book in the bestselling series for newly independent readers with these laugh-out-loud tales of friendship, adventure and a little bit of poo!

I realised that our story was about ten million billion times better than the book we had read. So, when Sophy was asleep, I stayed up late, and wrote it all down…Gorgeously illustrated and with a classic feel, this is a brilliantly funny story of a rabbit and a bear … on the day that a new creature arrives in their valley, trying to Change Everything. Ideal for readers moving on from picture books. From novelist and playwright Julian Gough, and the winner of the Roald Dahl Funny Prize, Jim Field, this is a tale of friendship, wisdom, and how to be REALLY NOISY. Hello Yellow - 80 Books to Help Children Nurture Good Mental Health and Support With Anxiety and Wellbeing -