"Light-hearted and rambunctious [this] is a fairytale with a difference" — Guardian Best Children's Books of 2023

The fresh and funny story of a little princess who hates the stuffy palace, but loves the creatures she meets in the garden. A classic fairytale with a twist, celebrating animals and adventure, from the award-winning duo Sir Michael Morpurgo and Emily Gravett.

Clara is a small, strong-willed princess who likes running wild, jumping ditches and climbing trees . . . but most of all, she loves collecting creepy-crawlies and making them her friends. That’s not easy with a bossy butler and a pernickety nanny always on your case.

When Clara discovers that an ogre she keeps in her shoe under her bed isn’t an ogre at all, he offers her a way out of her predicament. There’s only one thing she needs to do . . .

The Ogre Who Wasn't is a lesson in kindness and a celebration of the natural world written by Sir Michael Morpurgo, the Children's Laureate 2003-4, and illustrated by the award-winning Emily Gravett: the marvellous partnership who also created the bestselling picture book, A Song of Gladness.