Deborah Niland is one of Australia's most loved illustrators. Her wonderful depiction of the imaginary hippo in There's a Hippopotamus on Our Roof Eating Cake earned her the prestigious Leipzig Bronze Medal, and the subsequent books in the series, which was written by Hazel Edwards, have been a worldwide success. Annie's Chair, both written and illustrated by Deborah, was first published in 2005 to critical and popular acclaim and won the 2006 Children's Book Council of Australia Book of the Year Award - Early Childhood. Her other works include When I Was a Baby and Let's Play! (Puffin Baby series) and the delightful illustrations for Margaret Wild's picture book Chatterbox. Deborah lives in Sydney where her three children and posse of dogs keep her extremely busy.
She recently illustrated The Tall Man and the Twelve Babies with her nephew, Tom Niland Champion.