Tohby Riddle facts for kids

Tohby Riddle is an Australian artist, writer, and illustrator. He creates picture books and illustrated books for children. His books have been published and translated into many languages worldwide.

A famous writer, Haruki Murakami, has translated some of Tohby Riddle's work. Tohby Riddle was also nominated for the 2022 Hans Christian Andersen Medal. This is a very important award for children's authors.

His popular picture books include The Great Escape from City Zoo and Nobody Owns the Moon. He also wrote The Greatest Gatsby: a visual book of grammar. He illustrated the "Word Spy" books, written by Ursula Dubosarsky.

From 1997 to 2006, Tohby Riddle was a weekly cartoonist. His cartoons appeared in Good Weekend magazine. This magazine is part of the Sydney Morning Herald and Melbourne's Age newspapers.

In 2005, he became the editor of The School Magazine. This is a literary magazine for children that started in 1916. His illustrations, non-fiction stories, and poems often appeared in the magazine. In 2009, he won the Patricia Wrightson Prize. He shared this award with Ursula Dubosarsky for their book The Word Spy.

Tohby Riddle's Books Translated by Haruki Murakami

In 2018, Tohby Riddle's book My Uncle's Donkey was translated into Japanese. The famous Japanese writer Haruki Murakami translated it. Mr. Murakami found the book in a bookshop in Melbourne, Australia. The Japanese version was published in December 2018.

Awards and Recognition

In December 2020, Tohby Riddle was nominated by Australia. He was put forward for the 2022 Hans Christian Andersen Award. This award recognizes authors and illustrators who have made lasting contributions to children's literature.

As an artist, Tohby Riddle's paintings have become very popular. In 2018, he had a show where all his paintings sold out. In 2022, his first solo art show was held. It was called "Silent Light" and took place at the Blue Mountains Cultural Centre. Many people praised the show, and 38 paintings were sold. His paintings are now part of collections. These include the State Library of NSW and the Blue Mountains Cultural Centre.

List of Books by Tohby Riddle

• Careful With that Ball, Eugene! (1989)
• A Most Unusual Dog (1992)
• Arnold Z Jones Could Really Play the Trumpet (1993)
• The Royal Guest (1993)
• 50 Fairies You Ought to Know About (1995)
• The Tip at the End of the Street (1996)
  • This book won the IBBY Australia Ena Noel encouragement award. It was also a Children's Book Council of Australia Notable Book in 1997.
• The Great Escape from City Zoo (1997)
  • It was shortlisted for the Children's Book Council of Australia Picture Book of the Year in 1998.
• The Singing Hat (2000)
  • This book was an Honour book in the Children's Book Council of Australia awards in 2001. It also won the Wilderness Society of Australia's Environment Award.
• What’s the Big Idea? (2003)
• Irving the Magician (2005)
  • It was shortlisted for the Picture Book of the Year in 2006.
• The Great Escape from City Zoo (2007, reissued)
• Dog and Bird See the Moon (2007)
• The Royal Guest (2007, reissued)
• Nobody Owns the Moon (2008)
  • This book was shortlisted for the NSW Premier's Literary Awards. It was also shortlisted for the Children's Book Council of Australia Picture Book of the Year in 2009.
• The Word Spy (2008, with Ursula Dubosarsky)
  • This book won the Patricia Wrightson Prize in 2009. It was also an Honour Book in the Eve Pownall Book of the Year awards.
• The Lucky Ones (2009)
• Return of the Word Spy (2010, with Ursula Dubosarsky)
  • This book won the Eve Pownall Book of the Year in 2009.
• My Uncle's Donkey (2010)
  • It received an Honour award for Picture Book of the Year in 2011.
• Unforgotten (2012)
  • This book was shortlisted for the NSW Premier's Literary awards.
• The Greatest Gatsby: a visual book of grammar (2015)
  • It was shortlisted for the NSW Premier's Literary awards. It was also selected as a White Raven by the International Youth Library.
• Milo: a moving story (2016)
• Here Comes Stinkbug! (2018)
  • This book was an Honour Book in the Children's Book Council of Australia Awards.
• Yahoo Creek: an Australian mystery (2019)
  • It was shortlisted for the Eve Pownall Book of the Year. It was also a finalist for Best Graphic Novel/Illustrated Work.
• Nobody Owns the Moon (2019, 10th anniversary reissue)
• The Astronaut's Cat (2020)
• The March of the Ants (2021, with Ursula Dubosarsky)