David West runs his own nursery business, specializing in the commercial production of rare trees, and he runs a mail order nursery.

Steve Parker is an author, editor and consultant specialising in illustrated information books on the natural world.

Steve is a Senior Scientific Fellow of the Zoological Society of London and has worked on the staff of London's Natural History Museum.

He is based in Suffolk, UK, and has written over 250 books, including dinosaur titles such Extreme Dinosaurs.

Clare specializes in non-fiction books for children of pre- and primary school age. Her favourite subjects are animals, history, art and culture.

She has been shortlisted for the prestigious Aventis Junior Science Prize, and won a dozen Practical Pre-School Gold Awards.

When she's not writing, Clare likes spending time with her family, taking long walks, going to the theatre and watching contemporary dance - her favourite dancer is Akram Khan.

John Malam is a children's author specialising in non-fiction.

He has written more than 200 books including many history titles. John is a National Literacy Trust Reading Champion, recognised for his work in encouraging reading amongst young people, particularly boys.

He has a background in history and archaeology and lives in Cheshire, England.