Shortlisted for the Pre-school Award, Early Year Awards 2009
Sylvia is the only dragon in the whole world, and she is very lonely... until one day, she meets Bird. Tiny and chirpy, so different from the huge dragon, Bird somehow changes Sylvia's life forever. A gorgeous story about love and friendship from the pen of Augustus and his Smile and Ernest.
Greenaway Medal winning illustrator Catherine Rayner’s stunning illustrations create a beautiful, warm-hearted celebration of the very special friendship between a great big dragon and a tiny little bird. Sylvia the dragon is lonely as she doesn’t know any other dragons and doesn’t have any friends. Then she finds Bird. Together, the two of them set off on an adventure to the moon in the hope of finding other dragons…When their mission fails, Sylvia and Bird discover that their friendship is all they need and settle down to live happily ever after.
Catherine Rayner was born in Harrogate and now lives in Edinburgh. She has a BA Hons in Visual Communication and Illustration from Leeds College of Art and Edinburgh College of Art. Much of her inspiration – and occasionally modelling! – for her illustration comes from her pets: her horse Shannon, guinea pig Marvin, dog Ellie, cat Emma and two goldfish, Bruce and Sheila. Catherine was shortlisted for the Booktrust Early Years Award Best New Illustrator in 2006, and she won the prestigious Kate Greenaway Medal in 2009.
Julia Eccleshare, the editorial expert on Lovereading4kids says, Prize winning illustrator Catherine Rayner has created stunning picture books introducing delightful characters including Harris, a hare with exceptionally large feet and Ernest, a moose who is determined to get himself into a book – no mean feat when you are too big to fit in the pages. Gorgeous, warmly coloured large scale pictures lie at the heart of Catherine’s work.
