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James Catchpole was destined to be either an itinerant singer or an amputee footballer. He managed to get off the substitutes' bench a couple of times for the England Amputee Football Team, and also busked around Provence with a guitar (another profession where it actively helps to have one leg), but reached the limits of his talent in both fields by his mid-twenties, and so joined the family business of children's books. He now runs The Catchpole Agency with his wife Lucy, and represents authors and illustrators of children's picture books, non-fiction and novels, including Polly Dunbar, SF Said, Michelle Robinson and David Lucas. Lucy and James live in Oxford with their two young daughters, the eldest of whom is firmly convinced she will be joining the business too - but at five, she has plenty of time to recant. Karen George has spent A LOT of time drawing and painting. When she was small that's what she liked doing best.When she was a little older, Karen gained a first class honours degree in Fine Art followed by an MA from The Royal College of Art. Karen painted film sets for a while until, in 2009, she won Waterstone's 'Picture This' competition to illustrate Freddie and the Fairy for Julia Donaldson. This means Karen still joyfully spends lots of time drawing and painting . . . and now she writes too! Karen lives in Bristol with her family and Dr Calamari the cat.
'A revolutionary book on disability.' -Inclusive Storytime 'Catchpole's beautifully judged, child-friendly words ably evoke the fatigue and wariness of repeatedly being asked the same question rather than simply being accepted and allowed to play, while George's warm images amplify the delight of shared imagination.' -The Guardian 'Wonderful, delightful and important. [...] Not only will it help nondisabled adults and children understand what it is like to be singled out for being different, but it will empower disabled children and help them realise they don't have to justify themselves to people they don't know.' - Jen Campbell, bestselling author of Franklin's Flying Bookshop 'With beautifully characterful illustrations and plenty of calming white space, it exudes gentle energy and humour to appeal to every child. This is a stunningly clever book.' -BookTrust 'The beauty of What Happened to You? is its focus on empathy... a brilliant book to open up the conversation with pre-school kids.' -Disability Arts Online 'A groundbreaking picture book reflecting the world of a visibly disabled child... a funny and very enjoyable read that will nevertheless perform an urgently needed task and generate very useful discussion at home and school.' -LoveReading4Kids
