Stephen Cartwright (28 December 1947 – 12 February 2004) was a British children’s book illustrator who illustrated more than 150 books which sold millions of copies worldwide. His illustrations are noted for being instantly recognizable and usually depicting open-faced, innocent-looking children and animals. Cartwright was born in Bolton in the United Kingdom and studied at Rochdale College of Art before moving to London where he trained at Saint Martin’s School of Art and then at the Royal College of Art. Throughout his 27 years of book illustration, he was closely associated with Usborne Publishing, whose First Thousand Words series was Cartwright’s first international success and was translated into 55 languages.