Roald Dahl

Discover the life of Roald Dahl, the groundbreaking author whose work is beloved by children all over the world. Little Roald grew up in the city of Cardiff in Wales. He loved to spend time reading with his family and visiting the local sweetshop for yummy chocolatey treats. But he found school difficult. No one believed in Roald's potential. When Roald finished school, he was ready to make his life an adventure! He travelled the world and saw some amazing sights. When World War II started, he was ready to serve his country and joined the air force. During his service, his plane crashed over a desert, leaving him blind for a period of time. Roald wrote about his experience of the crash, and enjoyed doing it so much that from then on, he knew he wanted to be an author. Roald began crafting books for children, working away in the shed at the bottom of his garden. From Charlie and the Chocolate Factoryto James and the Giant Peach, his wonderful stories have captivated generations of readers. The magical worlds he created have been brought to the stage and screen, with hit musicals, like Matilda, and films, like The Witches. The story also boldly addresses the antisemitic remarks that Roald Dahl made during his lifetime, highlighting the power and impact that our words can have: both to delight or cause lasting harm. This thoughtful book features quirky illustrations and-extra facts at the back, including a biographical timeline with historical photos and a detailed profile of Roald's life. His story shows that extraordinary talent lies within each and every one of us. 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.

Maria Isabel Sánchez Vegara, born in Barcelona, Spain, is a writer and creative director in constant search of new concepts for children's books. In 2014, she created a book for her two twin nieces for their birthday, which shortly thereafter became the first book in the Little People, BIG DREAMS series. This multimillion-copy bestselling series of picture books explores the lives of outstanding people. From Mahatma Gandhi to Aretha Franklin, to Prince, Sánchez Vegara researches complex careers and makes them accessible to young children, with her unique and mindful style of writing. She works with a diverse team of illustrators to make each book lively, eye-catching and motivating. Working for more than fifteen years for clients in top advertising agencies, her books combine creativity with learning, aiming to establish a new and fresh relationship between children and pop culture. ​ Francis Martin is an illustrator and artist living out in the wilds of Pendle Witch Country, conjuring up pictures for stories by splodging ink and charcoal all over the place. He is a graduate of Cambridge School of Art's MA in Children's Book Illustration, who in another life did five BBC Radio 1 John Peel sessions. He loves dogs and travelling across the moors in trains.