Margaret Mahy (Author)
Margaret Mahy (1936-2012) is one of New Zealand's most celebrated children's writers. She is the author of more than 150 titles, which have been translated into many different languages and sold around the world. Appointed to the Order of New Zealand in 1993, Mahy also won many global prizes for children's writers, including the Carnegie Medal and the prestigious Hans Christian Andersen Award.

'It is in the nature of books, that they have the capacity to make you feel powerful about what you can alter and achieve in your life' - Margaret Mahy

Herb MacDonald (Illustrator)
Born and raised in South Waikato, Herb MacDonald now lives in Titirangi, Auckland. He credits the endless supply of paper at the Tokoroa Paper Mill as the beginning of his love of drawing. His first published drawing (a zebra and a finch) appeared in the NZ Herald when he was seven years old. After a career in advertising, including running his own design business for the last 15 years, he is excited to be rediscovering his passion for illustration.