Peter Clover (b. Islington, North London, 9 June 1952) is an English children's book author and illustrator best known for the Sheltie the Shetland Pony series, featuring a young girl, Emma, and her shaggy Shetland pony. In addition Clover has created four other short series: Rescue Riders, Hercules and Donkey Diaries, Little Bridge Farm and a few standalone titles. His inspiration for pony stories comes from when he used to live in Exmoor in Devon. He explained that: "I wanted to spend my time doing the two things I enjoyed most — writing and creating pictures. Adventure stories for kids seemed like a brilliant idea and I just love it. Being able to create an entire village like Little Applewood and bringing all the characters to life gives me such a buzz."