Writer Sam McBratney, from the picture book Guess how much I love you, is deceased. He turned 77 years old.
The Northern Ireland-born author passed away on Friday, his publisher Walker Books announced.
The 1994 children’s book in which Hazeltje and Grote Haas describe their love for each other has been translated into 57 languages. The book, with illustrations by Anita Jeram, sold about 50 million copies.
“I love you to the moon and back” is probably the most famous phrase. A cartoon and a play have also been made about the adventure of the two brown hares.
‘Light story’
McBratney himself once called the world-famous book a “light-hearted story that should help a great and a small person to have fun together”. He had expected it to be out of print after five or six years, McBratney said in a statement interview met Reading Rockets.
A sequel to the story is expected at the end of this month. That book, in which Hazeltje makes a new friend, is called Do you want to be my friend.
McBratney has written more than fifty books. He was a teacher before devoting himself fully to writing.
–
