ROSEMARY SUTCLIFF , who sadly died in 1992, was the author of many widely-acclaimed historical novels for both children and adults. She won the Library Association Carnegie Medal in 1959 for her historical novel for children The Lantern Bearers, and was runner-up with Tristan and Iseult in 1972. ALAN LEE is an English book illustrator and movie conceptual designer. He won the Kate Greenaway Medal for his illustrations to Rosemary Sutcliff's Black Ships Before Troy, which was followed by The Wanderings of Odysseus (both Frances Lincoln). In 1998 he won the Best Artist Award at the World Fantasy Awards. He illustrated the Centenary editions of J.R.R.

Tolkien's The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings and, more recently, The Children of Húrin (HarperCollins). He went on to transform his vision of Middle Earth from page to celluloid in Peter Jackson's film trilogy The Lord of the Rings, winning an Oscar in 2004 as part of the Art Direction team on The Return of the King. He is now designing the film of The Hobbit. Alan lives in South Devon.