Meet the author

Eoin McLaughlin.

Writer · Ireland

Eoin McLaughlin: the Sunday Times bestselling author of The Hug and While We Can't Hug, whose warm, giggly picture books — like the boastful I Rock — are reliable read-aloud hits for 3-6s.

Eoin McLaughlin is an Irish, Sunday Times bestselling author of warm, funny picture books for the very young. His breakout, The Hug, illustrated by Polly Dunbar, follows a hedgehog and a tortoise each longing for a cuddle nobody seems able to give; its lockdown-era companion, While We Can't Hug, became a global comfort read and was nominated for the Kate Greenaway Medal. The series has sold well over a quarter of a million copies. His picture book I Rock, illustrated by Mark Chambers, hands the narration to a wildly self-important stone zipping through millions of years of Earth's history, all read-aloud energy and sly humour that rewards grown-ups too. McLaughlin writes with a light, giggly touch and a soft emotional centre — a dependable choice for sharing at 3 to 6.