The book details the creation and publication of her first picture book in 1973, My Cat Likes to Hide in Boxes, in collaboration with her cousin Eve Sutton. The ‘never before seen’ workings from Lynley Dodd's 'ideas book' are generously scattered throughout the book, and are a true delight.Īs you weave your way through this book, you will be intrigued by Dodd’s background childhood, school life, life at art school, her teaching career, marriage, children and her journey in becoming a successful children’s author illustrator. “It was just a scrap of paper I’d tucked between the pages of my ideas book” The book begins with Hairy Maclary’s very own history how he was created, including the first sketch on lined shopping paper, which inspired it all. There is a wonderful blend of biographical history written by author Finlay MacDonald, direct quotes from Lynley Dodd herself, rough sketches, photographs, and a mix of pictures and text from her acclaimed books. It is as much a pictorial history as it is a written one, with at least one illustration on every page. It is a book that explores Lynley Dodd’s working world. The Life and Art of Lynley Dodd is not just a story about a storyteller. I went to a very small school in the middle of the very big forest.

I grew up in the middle of a very big pine forest. But you wouldn’t expect a biography of Hairy Maclary’s creator, to be anything less. Right from the cover, this beautifully crafted book is delightful to look at, to hold and to read.

The life and art of lynley dodd