About the Author/Illustrator
Pamela Allen is a phenomenon in the world of children's books. In twenty-eight years she has produced thirty-nine picture books, many of which have won prestigious awards and commendations both in Australia and overseas. She is the first illustrator to have won the Children's Book Council of Australia Picture Book of the Year Award two years running, for Who Sank the Boat? (1983) and Bertie and the Bear (1984). Some of Pamela's other awards include the NSW Premier's Literary Award, the AIM Book Award (New Zealand) and the International Board on Books for Young People (IBBY) Honour Diploma for Illustration. Most recently, Is Your Grandmother a Goanna? won a 2008 Speech Pathology of Australia Book of the Year Award, Shhh! Little Mouse has been shortlisted for the 2008 CBC Book of the Year Award: Early Childhood, Grandpa and Thomas and the Green Umbrella was shortlisted for the 2007 CBC Book of the Year Award: Early Childhood and Grandpa and Thomaswon the same category in 2004.
Pamela's picture books have earned classic status through their enduring popularity with the very young.
A note from the editor
Is Your Grandmother a Goanna? is classic Pamela Allen. It's wonderfully playful and imaginative with the delightful repetition of the little boy's question, 'Have you seen my grandmother?' and the station master's perfectly serious question back 'Is your grandmother a goanna?' Children laugh every time it is read to them and join in with the little boy's indignant response of 'No!'. I am a big fan of Pamela's work and know that this one will be an instant hit with grandchildren and grandparents alike.