Michael de Souza

Michael de Souza is the author of the classic book series Rastamouse and the creator of the well-known BBC CBeebies character of the same name, along with bandmates Scratchy and Zoomer, who form Da Easy Crew. He is also co-founder of Little Roots Publishing, who produced the original books.

Michael came to England in 1960, leaving Trinidad to join his parents in west London. He has taught swimming for 22 years. Seeing the imagination and bravery of his students in overcoming their fear of water inspired Michael to write. His first book, Rastamouse and the Crucial Plan, was published in 2003; by 2011, it had become a much-loved animated series. Michael has been taking Rastamouse and a taste of the Caribbean to thousands of children and families in schools and libraries, locally, nationally and internationally since 2004.