Tohby Riddle facts for kids

Tohby Riddle is an Australian artist, writer, and illustrator. He creates amazing picture books and illustrated books for children. His books are loved by many people around the world. They have been published in lots of countries and translated into many different languages.

One of his books was even translated by Haruki Murakami, a very famous writer! Tohby Riddle was also nominated for the 2022 Hans Christian Andersen Medal. This is a huge award for children's authors and illustrators.

Tohby Riddle's Books

Tohby Riddle has written and illustrated many popular books. Some of his well-known picture books include The Great Escape from City Zoo, The Royal Guest, and Nobody Owns the Moon. He also created My Uncle's Donkey and Unforgotten.

Besides picture books, he wrote The Greatest Gatsby: a visual book of grammar. This book helps you understand grammar in a fun, visual way. He also illustrated the Word Spy books, which were written by Ursula Dubosarsky.

Tohby also wrote a novel called The Lucky Ones. For nearly ten years, from 1997 to 2006, he was a weekly cartoonist. His cartoons appeared in Good Weekend magazine. He later released two collections of his cartoons: What's the Big Idea? and Pink Freud.

Working for Children's Magazines

In 2005, Tohby Riddle became the editor of The School Magazine. This is a special literary magazine for children. It has been around for a very long time, since 1916! Tohby's own illustrations, non-fiction stories, and poems have often appeared in the magazine.

In 2009, he won the Patricia Wrightson Prize. This award is part of the New South Wales Premier's Literary Awards. He won it with Ursula Dubosarsky for their book The Word Spy.

International Recognition

In 2018, something very exciting happened. Tohby Riddle's book My Uncle's Donkey was translated into Japanese. The person who translated it was Haruki Murakami. He is one of the world's most famous living writers! Mr. Murakami found the book in a bookshop in Melbourne, Australia. He loved it so much that he decided to translate it himself. The Japanese version was published in December 2018.

In December 2020, Australia nominated Tohby Riddle for the 2022 Hans Christian Andersen Award. This award is given to authors and illustrators who have made a lasting contribution to children's literature.

Art Exhibitions

Tohby Riddle is also a talented artist. His paintings have become very popular. In 2018, he had a show where all his paintings sold out! In 2022, he held his first solo art exhibition. It was called "Silent Light" and was shown at the Blue Mountains Cultural Centre. Many people praised his work, and 38 of his paintings were sold.

In 2023, one of his paintings was chosen for the Salon des Refuses. This is an exhibition that shows artworks not selected for the main Wynne Prize. His paintings are also kept in important collections. These include the State Library of NSW and the Blue Mountains Cultural Centre.

List of Books

• 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)
• The Great Escape from City Zoo (1997)
• The Singing Hat (2000)
• What’s the Big Idea? (2003)
• Irving the Magician (2005)
• Dog and Bird See the Moon (2007)
• Nobody Owns the Moon (2008)
• The Word Spy (2008, with Ursula Dubosarsky)
• The Lucky Ones (2009)
• Return of the Word Spy (2010, with Ursula Dubosarsky)
• My Uncle's Donkey (2010)
• Unforgotten (2012)
• The Greatest Gatsby: a visual book of grammar (2015)
• Milo: a moving story (2016)
• Here Comes Stinkbug! (2018)
• Yahoo Creek: an Australian mystery (2019)
• The Astronaut's Cat (2020)
• The March of the Ants (2021, with Ursula Dubosarsky)