Young Camille befriends a strange visitor to his small town, and one day he brings this man a gift of bright, beautiful sunflowers. The man is the artist Vincent van Gogh, and the sunflowers quickly become the subject of a magnificent painting. This is a title in Barron's Anholt's Artists Books for Children series, in which author and illustrator Laurence Anholt recalls memorable and sometimes amusing moments when the lives of the artists were touched by children. Anholt's fine illustrations appear on every page and include reproductions of works by the artists.
In a career spanning three decades, British author/illustrator Laurence Anholt has produced over 200 children's books, which are published in more than 30 languages. Books like the hilarious Seriously Silly Stories and the self-illustrated Anholt's Artists series have sold many millions of copies around the world. Laurence has also collaborated on numerous picture books with his wife, the artist, Catherine Anholt.
In 2013, Laurence created his first novel for adults. The extraordinary Passionate Boy is a strange, bawdy and magical tale, which is now available from Amazon as a download for Kindle or iPad.
Born in 1959, Laurence Anholt was brought up mainly in Holland where he developed a lasting love of Art. He went on to study Painting for 8 years, culminating in a Master's Degree from the Royal Academy of Art in London. Catherine and Laurence live and work in a house on a hill with studios and wild flower meadow, overlooking the sea in Devon, southwest England.
Laurence's books have won numerous awards, including the prestigious Nestlé Smarties Gold Award on two occasions. For more than a decade, Laurence has been amongst the top 200 Most Borrowed Authors from UK libraries across all genres. He was included in the Independent on Sunday's Top 10 Children's Authors in the UK and was described by William Watt as "one of the most versatile authors writing for children today".
Catherine and Laurence have been closely involved with a number of literacy schemes such as the UK Government funded Bookstart scheme. Their publication Babies Love Books (also a much-loved picture book) encourages parents to share books with babies from the earliest possible age. Their work has taken the Anholts inside Buckingham Palace and Downing Street on several occasions.
Laurence's self‐illustrated Anholt's Artists series, is an introduction to great artists for young children. These beautiful books are used as part of the national school curriculum in many countries and are sold in galleries and museums all over the world. The books, which include Camille and the Sunflowers, Degas and the Little Dancer and The Magical Garden of Claude Monet have taken Laurence on many fascinating journeys of discovery. Each scrupulously researched story is based on an actual encounter between a real child and a great artist. In several instances, Laurence has been assisted by relatives of the artists or by the protagonists themselves - for example, Laurence developed a long-standing friendship with Sylvette David, Picasso's Girl With a Ponytail. This series currently includes 9 titles and it has been adapted in many forms, including Apps for iPads, stage and TV productions and a full scale van Gogh musical which Laurence launched in Korea. The Anholt's Artists books are renowned not only for their educational value, but also for their life-affirming themes of aspiration, tolerance and acceptance of those who are different.
Laurence Anholt is a much sought after public speaker, talking about literature and his own zany view of life at conferences such as the European Council of International Schools Conference, the Society of Authors' Bi-Annual Conference and the Edinburgh Festival.
The Anholts have three grown up children, Claire and twins, Tom and Maddy. Claire currently works for the UN Secretariat in New York, Maddy is an actor living in London and Tom is a successful artist based in Berlin. Tom Anholt provided the artwork for Laurence's recent adult novel, Passionate Boy, which is set in the world of contemporary Fine Art.
Laurence Anholt's interests include art, literature, adventure travel and Buddhist meditation.
For further information visit the Anholts' website: http://www.anholt.co.uk
