John Dougherty is the multi-award winning author of more than 40 books for children including the much-praised The Hare-Shaped Hole and its companions The Bear-Shaped Hole and It Won’t Be Forever, as well as There’s a Pig Up My Nose (winner of Oscar’s Book Prize 2018), the critically-acclaimed Stinkbomb & Ketchup-Face series, and two well-received poetry collections, Zooming the Zoo and Dinosaurs & Dinner-Ladies. Others of his books have been shortlisted for the Branford Boase Award and the Ottakar’s (now Waterstones) Children’s Books Prize. His work has been translated into more than 25 languages worldwide.
A former teacher, John was one of the first Patrons of Reading in the UK, and is a former chair of the Society of Authors’s Children’s Writers and Illustrators Group. He is a popular and inspirational visitor to schools and festivals, nationally and internationally.
Born in Larne, Northern Ireland, John now lives with his wife Jennie in Gloucestershire.
