Julia’s books are magical for children and adults

Some of the most precious moments with my son have been spent, tucked up in bed, reading a Julia Donaldson book.

The children’s writer, most famous for creating the Gruffalo stories, has an incredible gift for spinning tales that are as magical for adults as they are for young ones.

So at this time of year, I don’t reach for traditional festive bedtime stories like The Night Before Christmas, instead I’ll read my six-year-old The Stick Man.We both love this book about an animated twig’s desperate bid to get back to his family in time for Christmas. I challenge anyone not to shed a tear when our wooden hero is reunited with his “stick lady love and their stick children three” thanks to Santa Claus (pictured above).

Julia’s back catalogue has proven a rich seam for the Christmas TV schedules and this year it will be the turn of The Snail And The Whale, her story about how even the tiniest of creatures can make a big difference.

In our interview, on pages 6&7, Julia says the seeds of her success were sown when she was a young student, busking her way around Europe. Her singing eventually led to a job in children’s TV and then to writing for kids.

Like the snail from the book, it was a little adventure that changed the course of her life.

This week, as she is named the decade’s biggest-selling author, she tells us: “The little snail is the one that’s going out on a limb, striking out and doing something different. “Sometimes it’s a good idea to throw caution to the wind and do something a bit crazy and unconventional.”

Now that’s a Christmas message well worth passing onto our little ones.