Shirley Hughes

Shirley Hughes has died aged 94 and heartbroken fans were quick to pay tribute to her “wonderful legacy” at this difficult time. Beloved children's.

And it’s clear from the immense number of poignant responses and the outpouring of support and sympathy just how much Shirley’s works have touched people’s hearts since her first – Lucy and Tom’s Day – was published in 1960. I will read it now and hold you all in my thoughts. Beloved children’s author and illustrator Shirley Hughes wrote some of the best books for kids and there’ll be many parents out there who have fond memories of her Alfie and Annie Rose classics in particular.

Tributes have been paid to children's author and illustrator Shirley Hughes who has died at the age of 94.

In 2017, asked about her inspiration for Dogger, she told the PA news agency: “The inspiration behind it was another lost toy. (The actual) Dogger was a present to our son when he was two years old. I have derived so much fulfilment from my long career, first as an illustrator of other artists’ stories and then creating my own.

Beloved in her native England, she wrote and illustrated more than 70 books for children of all ages, with millions of copies sold worldwide.

In 2017, Ms. Hughes was named a Commander of the Order of the British Empire for her contributions to literature. She had been working as a freelance illustrator when her first book, “Lucy and Tom’s Day,” was published in 1960. Ms. Hughes said she spent “quite a lot of time” in her later years answering children’s letters. The Blitz also figures in “Ruby in the Ruins” (2018); in that book, the father returns from war, but so changed that he feels to Ruby like a stranger in the house. “Dogger and Alfie are about the tiniest of incidents — down to the stress of putting your shoes on — but these things can be a source of real anxiety for a child,” he wrote. For Ms. Hughes, the Nazi bombing of English cities and towns in 1940 and 1941 remained visceral memories. “Why remove such a great narrative pleasure?” She included illustrations in all her books, including the novels. “You just don’t get that in Shirley,” Mr. Pullman added. “They depict a world of blissfully disheveled kids in catch-as-catch-can clothing.” My whole idea is to slow them down and get them to make a leisurely examination of a picture at their own pace.” She was perhaps best known for “Dogger” (1977), in which a boy named Dave loses his beloved stuffed toy when he’s distracted by a school fair and the prospect of an ice cream cone. Ms. Hughes became a beloved figure in England, honored by Queen Elizabeth II and showered with awards.