I'M Number One

Michael J. Rosen is an acclaimed author, editor and illustrator of some forty books for both adults and young people. Many are inspired by his lifelong experience with animals; he studied Zoology at university, has worked as a dog trainer and founded a granting programme to support animal welfare organizations. He says of ChaseR, When I moved from the major city where I’d lived most of my life to a rural community, the changes were monumental. And I often thought, What if I hadn’t actually chosen to live here? I wrote this novel not only to imagine this new way of life from a teenage point of view, but also to consider the complicated (and always teetering) balance we try to achieve, living, as we all do, amid an ever-diminishing natural world. Michael J. Rosen lives in Ohio, USA.

Bob Graham was born in Sydney and studied drawing and painting at the Julian Ashton Art School. He has written and illustrated over 25 titles and is recognised worldwide for the warm, gently humourous and very familiar stories for children which he writes and illustrates. His stories grow from homely anecdotes and memories and are populated with people and creatures very like his own family and pets! He has won many awards including the Children’s Book Council of Australia award four times; the Human Rights Award; the Smarties Book Prize and the UNICEF Bologna Illustrator of the Year award. Most recently he was awarded The CILIP Kate Greenaway Medal (UK) for Jethro Byrde – Fairy Childin 2003.