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Early Reader: A Friend for Christmas

Lauren St John, Author

Matt Robertson, Illustrator

Series: Early Reader

Imprint: Orion Children's Books

Publication date: November 3, 2016

Category: Animal stories (Children's / Teenage)

ISBN: 9781444008067

A full colour red Early Reader story about a dog who comes home for Christmas from BLUE PETER BOOK AWARD-winning author, Lauren St John.

Early Readers are stepping stones from picture books to reading books perfect for building confidence in new readers and reluctant readers. A blue Early Reader is perfect for sharing and reading together. A red Early Reader is the next step on your reading journey.

If Luka could have anything in the world for Christmas, it would be to see Buddy again, his red and grey mongrel with one floppy ear. But Buddy has been missing for months.

Then again, sometimes, at Christmas time, wishes really do come true.

Lauren St John

Lauren St John grew up surrounded by horses, cats, dogs and a pet giraffe on a farm and game reserve in Zimbabwe, the inspiration for her bestselling White Giraffe and One Dollar Horse series, as well as her YA horse novel, The Glory. Dead Man’s Cove, the first in her Laura Marlin Mystery series, won the Blue Peter Book of the Year Award. Before becoming a children’s author, she worked as a journalist for The Sunday Times, writing about sports, music and spies. Along with her veterinary nursing training, it served as perfect research for her Kat Wolfe mystery series and The Snow Angel, a standalone MG novel.

A passionate conservationist, Lauren is an Ambassador for the Born Free Foundation, a patron for horse sanctuary, Mane Chance, and the founder of Authors4Oceans. When not rescuing leopards and dolphins, she is a full-time valet to her rescued, and not in the least demanding, Bengal cat, Max.

To find out more, visit her website at www.laurenstjohn.com

Matt Robertson

Matt Robertson grew up in Suffolk, and spent most of his childhood drawing and creating characters. He completed his MA in Children’s Book Illustration at Cambridge School of Art in 2014, receiving a Distinction for his work. Matt is the winner of a Lara Jones Award and a Macmillan Children’s Book Prize, and he was a finalist in the Waterstone’s ‘Picture This’ competition. His first book, Super Stan, has been shortlisted for the Waterstones Picture Book Prize and is the winner of the 2017 Dundee Picture Book Award. Matt lives with his wife in Norwich.