2-Minute Stories for 2-Year-Olds

Cottage Door Press is an independent publisher of high-quality children’s books. We believe that every child deserves an excellent first book experience–beginning on the day they’re born. Reading is learning is our driving philosophy, and we strive to help parents understand why reading aloud from birth is so important. We offer a simple development-based guide to help them on their journey. Ginger Swift is a pen name for the creative team at Cottage Door Press. We use a name like this when we work together on a story. We choose a name that stands for “red bird,” which is our cheerful little mascot.

I grew up in Bangor, Northern Ireland and moved to England for art college in Liverpool, then London. I did a lot of formal studying, and learned a huge amount during that time, but I think my path towards a career in picture books began with my love of comics and cartoons, particularly “Peanuts”, the creation of my hero, the great Charles M. Schulz. ​ Before I became a full-time illustrator and writer, I did many other jobs including teaching English, working in a bookshop and designing Christmas and Halloween signage for supermarkets! ​ I work with publishers in the UK and around the world including Bloomsbury, Simon & Schuster, Little Tiger Press, Oxford University Press and Hinkler. ​ My books have been published in Spanish (Castillian and Catalan), German, Korean, Chinese, Japanese, French, Finnish, Romanian, Afrikaans, Portuguese, Italian and this year, for the first time, in Scots Gaelic, Welsh and Hebrew!

Olga Demidova studied traditional applied arts and animation in Moscow and spent years working in animation before illustrating children’s books. She always tries to stay positive and see happy little things in everyday life that will encourage those who see her drawings.