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Clare Balding (Author) When she was young, Clare Balding thought she was a dog. Disappointed to discover she was only human, she did her best to spend every waking hour with dogs and ponies. She could ride before she could walk and, growing up surrounded by racehorses trained by her father, she dreamt of winning the Grand National or riding for Great Britain at the Olympics. Those dreams never came true but the consolation prize hasn't been bad. As a television and radio presenter, Clare has worked at six Olympic Games, the highlight being London 2012, as well as the Winter Olympics, Paralympics, Commonwealth Games, the Grand National, Royal Ascot, Wimbledon and the Ryder Cup. Clare lives in London with her wife, Alice, their dog Archie and their cat, Button. Tony Ross (Illustrator) Tony Ross was born in Wandsworth, but moved during the war to Cheshire. He ended up at the Liverpool Regional College of Art after despairing of working with his first love - horses. He went into teaching after a bad day in an advertising agency, where he was art director, and at first taught in all sorts of areas - design, advertising, typography. At that time he was drawing cartoons in magazines like Punch. He has written and illustrated many popular books for children including Foxy Fables, I'm Coming to Get You and Naughty Nigel, all published in Puffin. He lives in Cheshire with his wife and daughter.
Charlie is a feisty, funny girl who will appeal to pony-mad readers who'll devour all the inside knowledge of the equine world that Balding brings to her debut * Daily Mail * Will inspire girls to aim high * Daily Express * There are useful human life lessons here: create a team, Balding urges, delegate, do your research, believe in yourself, and magic ensues * Observer * Funny and touching * Telegraph * A cheerful paean to books, big thighs and working hard to realise your dreams * Guardian * A heart-warming story with a great girl-power message * Jacqueline Wilson on The Racehorse Who Wouldn't Gallop *
