The Tashi books are written by Anna Fienberg and her mother, Barbara Fienberg. They are illustrated by Kim Gamble.
About Anna
Anna is a storyteller with a special talent for fantasy and things magical. She grew up in a house filled with books. Barbara was a teacher librarian who relished stories as much as chocolates. 'On Sunday mornings we'd all lie in bed with our books, lost in magical wardrobes, witches’ spells, genies’ magic … What we were going to read next was just as important in our family as what was for lunch!' says Anna.
Anna explains that 'Tashi began as a conversation with my mother. She was telling me how, when she was a child, she used to tell whoppers. Creative fibs. Tall stories. And the kids would crowd around, dying to hear the latest tale. We began talking about a character like her - a character who told fantastic stories - and over many cups of tea we cooked up Tashi.'
These days, Anna thinks of Tashi as a bit like a family member. She says 'How many times a day do we talk about him, wonder what on earth will happen to him next? "What would Tashi do?" we ask each other desperately in a crisis. You could try this too, if you like, because it's actually quite a handy way to solve problems.'
About Kim
Kim is one of Australia's leading illustrators for children. He was born in Sydney and moved around and worked in a variety of occupations before beginning at the age of 36 to illustrate stories for children. His first assignment was for the School Magazine. It was there he met Anna Fienberg.
Anna and Kim have worked together for many years, not only on Tashi but
also on the Minton series, Joseph and several other books.
