Dulak and Cobb pair up for Faber picturebook

FAB Prize winner Mariesa Dulak will write a picturebook with illustrator Rebecca Cobb, There’s a Tiger on the Train, as part of Dulak’s three-book deal for Faber.

Leah Thaxton, publisher, acquired world all-language rights in the text from Gill McLay at the Bath Literary Agency and in the illustrations from Louise Lamont at LBA Literary Agency.

The Ice-Cream Crocodile is slated for spring 2026 with a further publication in 2028.  

“There’s a Tiger on the Train follows an extraordinary journey to the sea, in which a tiger boards the train along with a jungle of other animals – all without dad even looking up from his phone,” the publisher said. “A sensational rhyming story and cautionary tale about mobile phones.”

Dulak was born in Yorkshire of dual heritage (Barbadian/White British). She completed a degree in English Literature, an MA in Children’s Literature and worked in bookselling, publishing and as a children’s librarian before writing herself. She won the FAB Prize, run by Faber, in 2020.

Cobb grew up in Buckinghamshire and Somerset. She studied Illustration at Falmouth College of Arts and has been living in Falmouth and working as an author and illustrator ever since. In 2013, she won the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize and has been shortlisted for the Kate Greenaway Medal three times.

Dulak said: “To win the FAB Prize, secure Gill McClay as my agent and sign a three-book deal with Faber was already a dream come true so adding Rebecca Cobb into the mix has been a ‘pinch me’ moment. There’s a Tiger on the Train is about connecting with those you love, and Rebecca was able to capture the relationship between the boy and the tiger with just a few strokes of her pen."

Dulak added: "Her layouts are thoughtful, her characters vibrant and all this while shoehorning hippos and crocodiles and piglets and pugs into the teeniest of train carriages."

Cobb said: "I love how the rhythm of Mariesa’s words echoes the sound of the steam train clanking along the tracks. It is really enjoyable to read aloud. The storyline of the dad on his mobile phone is so relevant to our times and I love how it results in one of my favourite subjects for picture books – the contrast in the way grown-ups and children experience the world.”

Thaxton said: "Along with the charm and hilarity, there’s a fabulous, unnerving quality to this picture book that, yes, did put me in mind of a much-loved tiger classic! This is a book that celebrates fathers and sons, encourages ditching your phone for the holiday and heralds an incredible new talent. Rebecca Cobb was our first choice for illustrator. Together they have created a new classic.”