Lara Jones facts for kids

Lara Kate Jones (1975 – 26 March 2010) was a talented British artist, children's author, and illustrator. She is best known for her popular Poppy Cat series of children's books. These books have been translated into 20 languages and have sold over two and a half million copies worldwide.

The Lara Jones Award

In 2012, a special award was created to honor Lara Jones. It is called The Lara Jones Illustration Award. This award is given by Macmillan Children's Books. It offers a prize of £500 to a new illustrator who creates the best pictures for a children's book. So far, four talented artists have won this award.

Lara's Early Life

Lara Kate Jones was born in Ashby-de-la-Zouch, a town in Leicestershire, England. She spent her childhood in Shropshire. Both of her parents were writers. Her father, Ivan Jones, was a best-selling fiction writer and poet. Her mother, Mal Lewis Jones, also wrote books for children. Lara was the oldest of their three children. Her brother, Levin, became a professional violinist. Her sister, Jessica, is an artist, poet, and singer-songwriter.

Lara loved art from a young age. She studied art at Canterbury College of Art and then at Cheltenham College. After college, she worked at the Royal Academy and an artists' agency called Inkshed. Later, she decided to become a full-time writer and illustrator.

Her Wonderful Books

Lara Jones wrote and illustrated many books. Her most famous works are the Poppy Cat series. These books are published by Macmillan/Campbell Books. They are written for very young children. The Poppy Cat books have sold nearly two million copies. They are popular in many countries, including Brazil, Spain, France, Italy, and Japan.

The Poppy Cat books became so popular that they were made into two animated television series. Each series had 52 episodes. These shows were produced by Nick Jr. and King Rollo Films. The 104 episodes are shown all over the world, including in America and Great Britain.

Lara Jones received several awards for her Poppy Cat books:

• In 2004, she won the Sheffield Baby Book prize (bronze award).
• In 2005, "Poppy Cat's Farm" won a Booktrust Early Years Award.
• "Poppy Cat Hug" won the Bronze Award at the Right Start Best Toy Award in 2006.
• "Swap the Scene Poppy Cat" also won a Bronze Award in 2006 from the Practical Parenting Award.
• Good Night, Poppy Cat was named one of the best ten books for children under five by Boyd Tonkin in The Independent newspaper.
• Her book, "Poppy Cat's First Word Book", was highly praised by a pre-school magazine. It helps toddlers learn over 50 new words.

Lara also illustrated many other books. These included her own picture books, "I Love Hugs" and "I Love My Potty". She also drew pictures for books like "Mermaid Poems" and "Fairy Stories" by Clare Bevan. She illustrated "Babies Can" by Ian Whybrow and "Pip and the Edge of Heaven" by Elizabeth Liddle. Her last book was I Want a Mini Tiger, written by Joyce Dunbar.

Lara's Personal Life

While she was studying at college, Lara Jones met another artist named Shaun Clarke. They got married in 2003 and had two children together. Sadly, Lara passed away at the age of 34 due to a serious illness.