KARA MAY

Joe Lion is fed up with being the smallest: he wants to be bigger! Working out in Gus Gorilla's gym isn't the answer, though: what he needs are bigger, taller boots! But big boots are no fun. They trip Joe up at football, and mean he is big enough to help with the chores at home. But when neighbour Geoff Giraffe locks himself out of his house super small, bootless Joe Lion might be the only person who can save him. The I Am Reading series provides just the right balance of challenge and support for newly independent readers. Large, easy-to-read type, satisfying stories by top writers and cheerful full-colour pictures help children make the transition from picture books to chapter books. Each book includes a bookmark flap, tips for beginner readers and either short, numbered chapters or two short stories.

Kara May began writing for children whilst Resident Playwright at the Unicorn Theatre for Young People in London. Her first picture book, 'Knickerless Nicola', won the 1989 Acorn Award, and since then she has focused on her fiction writing and has had over 30 books published. Kara May lives in London. Jonathan Allen trained at St Martin's School of Art and has been illustrating children's books full-time since 1990. He has nearly forty titles to his name including the acclaimed lift-the-flap book 'Chicken Licken' (Transworld) and the picture book 'Wolf Academy' (Orchard). Jonathan Allen lives in Hertfordshire.