Margaret Mahy 
Down The Back of the Chair 

When Dad loses his car keys, toddler Mary has a suggestion: why not see what’s hiding down the back of the chair? But when they look, they get more than a few surprises…



This lively, eccentric poem is a visual explosion of fun and imagination, featuring dragons, pirates, treasure, lions, elephants and much more. Margaret Mahy’s classic story celebrates the wonderful everyday, guaranteed to put a smile on the face of readers young and old.



‘The entertainment, humour, and exuberance of it all arises from what Dad finds… Mahy’s text rollicks along in rhythm and rhyme, and Polly Dunbar’s graphics are akin to a fireworks display on the page; words, phrases and pictorial images metaphorically pop up and explode like stardust over the double spreads’ — School Librarian

About the author

Joyce Dunbar was born and brought up in Lincolnshire. She taught English for 20 years before becoming a full-time writer. Her books for children include This is the Star, which in 1996 became a world-wide best-seller, and Mundo and the Weatherchild, which was runner-up for the 1985 Guardian Children’s Fiction Award. The popular Mouse and Mole series has been animated for television with the voices of Alan Bennett and Richard Briers. She lives in Norwich.