Neal Layton facts for kids

Neal Layton is a talented British artist. He draws pictures for many popular children's books. You might know his work from books like Oscar and Arabella (published in 2002). Another famous book he illustrated is Bartholomew and the Bug (from 2004). Both of these books won special awards. They received the Bronze Award from the Nestlé Smarties Book Prize. This shows how much people loved his illustrations!

Learning to Be an Artist

Neal Layton was born in a place called Chichester. He loved art and design from a young age. He went to Northumbria University to study. There, he earned a special degree called a Bachelor of Arts (BA). His main subject was Graphic Design. This taught him how to create visual ideas.

Later, he continued his studies. He attended Central Saint Martins, a famous art school. He earned a Master of Arts (MA) degree there. This time, he focused on Illustration. This helped him become even better at drawing pictures for stories.

His Amazing Books

Neal Layton is very well known for his work with author Cressida Cowell. He drew all the pictures for her popular Emily Brown books. One of these books is called The Rabbit Belongs to Emily Brown. This book was so good that it made it onto a special list. It was named one of the Booktrust Best 100 Children's Books from the last 100 years!

He has also illustrated many other exciting stories. One of them is Where the Bugaboo Lives. This book is an interactive adventure. It lets you choose what happens next in the story. It was written by Sean Taylor. This book won two awards: the Hampshire Illustrated Book Award and the Coventry Inspiration Book Award. It has even been turned into a play. You can see it at the Little Angel Theatre.

Today, Neal Layton lives in Portsmouth. He continues to create wonderful illustrations that bring stories to life for children everywhere.