A.J.Young

Titles

The Emperor's Balloon - Contact to Download

“If you ever have the chance to go to Beijing in China you will see the grandeur and beauty of the Forbidden City and the Summer Palace, homes to the Emperors of old, and then you will see the vibrancy and energy of China’s modern capital.

When walking through one of the simple walled gardens of the Forbidden City I saw a stone bench and next to it an apple tree. Above me flying high through the broken clouds to some faraway place was a large aeroplane. The story of the Emperor’s Balloon was born.” A.J.Young

The Adventures of Ollie Can-Do - Contact to Download

“So many elephants are left orphaned and found by the dead body of their mothers, ravaged for their ivory tusks. If we are to survive on this planet we have to care for the animals around us and one of the best ways to do this is to instil in our children a sense of responsibility for them so that future generations might do better than us.

Knowing the sadness of others, even of animals, is an important lesson to learn, seeing them survive and succeed in their lives with fun and determination and courage in their adventures is another – and Ollie Can-Do has many adventures!” A.J.Young

Memory of a Honey Bee - Contact to Download

“There is a difference between summer bees and winter bees. In the winter there are only female worker bees in the hive. The bees form a cluster to keep each other warm as the Queen rests in the centre. The male drones would have died after the summer or been killed by the workers. They are bigger than the females and their only purpose is to fly with a Virgin Queen to mate with her. They make one flight and after that the male dies.

There can only be one Queen in a hive and when the Virgin Queen is born, the old Queen is usually killed.

Our hero is a male drone; born in the summer he should have died by the winter time, but what would happen to one who outstayed his welcome?” - A.J.Young.

The White Wolf of the Matterhorn - Click to Purchase

“The ballad of the White Wolf was written on Christmas Eve from a chalet in Switzerland at the foot of the Matterhorn. Friends were coming for dinner and there were gifts under the Christmas tree, but I wanted to give them something a little more personal – so I woke early that morning and wrote about a shepherd boy, a dog and a wolf.

The Matterhorn brings both beauty and sadness. Many brave people have died on its slopes and ridges. The hero in this though is the wolf, its strength and beauty matching that of the mountain.” - A.J.Young

About 4 Ever Young

Illustrated children's series

The 4 Ever Young series has been created to appeal to traditional values that have inspired children for generations; loyalty, love, friendship, courage and integrity. Throughout the series these values are explored through the lives of animals and people and the relationships they form with each other. Young’s ballads are usually illustrated with the hope that the readers can lose themselves in the words as well as the images which those words create.