A LIVERPOOL artist is waiting to see whether she will have the chance to illustrate the next book by the author of children’s classic The Gruffalo.

Anna Collison, 23, has been announced as one of six people in the running for the job to become the illustrator of Freddie And The Fairy, by Julia Donaldson.

Donaldson’s books sold more than 1m copies in the UK alone last year, and The Gruffalo, which this year celebrates its 10th anniversary, has sold more than 3m copies.

In April, the complete text to Freddie And The Fairy was made available on Waterstones’ website.

Aspiring artists were invited to submit their vision for the book by submitting an illustration for two pages from the story, with character sketches for the main characters.

Out of more than 1,000 entries, the six finalists were chosen by a panel of experts including the author herself.

Ms Collison, a former Gateacre comprehensive school pupil who studied illustration and design at Manchester Metropolitan University, said: “I graduated last year and this is the first real live project I have had to work on, so I was not expecting to get this far.

“I have always loved children’s literature and this has been a really brilliant story to work with.”

The winner will be announced at the Bath Festival of Children’s Literature in September.

WATCH a video of The Gruffalo book being read out loud at: www.liverpool dailypost.co.uk