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  • Published: 18 February 2020
  • ISBN: 9780241361016
  • Imprint: Ladybird
  • Format: Paperback
  • Pages: 96
  • RRP: $29.99

Hidden Planet

An Illustrator's Love Letter to Planet Earth



A stunning showcase of our planet's wildlife from one of Britain's best natural history illustrators

Perfect for animal-lovers everywhere! A beautiful crossover book for all ages, this is the book natural-history illustrator Ben has wanted to read since he was a child. Facts and descriptions provide insight into a curated collection of birds and animals - some endangered and some less so - told from the perspective of a detail-obsessed illustrator. Fun to read together or independently, let the secrets of the animals on our planet come to life in vibrant detail.

'This is my love letter to Planet Earth; a celebration of her hidden species, from the bold and the beautiful to the interesting but ugly. And while not a complete list, I hope that these few give a glimpse of the outstanding diversity of nature' - Ben Rothery

  • Published: 18 February 2020
  • ISBN: 9780241361016
  • Imprint: Ladybird
  • Format: Paperback
  • Pages: 96
  • RRP: $29.99

About the author

Ben Rothery

Ben Rothery is a detail-obsessed illustrator from Norwich, via Cape Town. He combines multiple processes to create intricate and delicate illustrations and repeating patterns, full of fine detail and vibrant colour.

Much of Ben's work is inspired or informed by his love of nature - he grew up wanting variously to be a shark, dinosaur or David Attenborough crossed with Indiana Jones, but settled upon illustration as a compromise that allowed him to bring those fantasies to life on paper. In 2021 he won the prestigious Silver Pencil Award for Hidden Planet, and his work is published throughout the world.

Ben works from a small but perfectly formed studio in London, which he shares with an unnecessarily large collection of very sharp pencils.

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Praise for Hidden Planet

For wildlife aficionados . . . [Hidden Planet] is filled with stunning illustrations . . . The engaging text is full of intriguing details

Children's Books of the Year, Guardian

This book is a thing of rare beauty

David Walliams

Ben Rothery is an extraordinary illustrator of the natural world, and an inspiration to children and grown-ups to write their own love letter to Planet Earth

Angels and Urchins