Cult author Russell Hoban died last night aged 86, the Guardian has reported.
The son of Jewish immigrants from the Ukraine, Hoban was born in Pennsylvania but lived in London for 30 years.
He made his name as a children’s book author, with titles including The Mouse And His Child, The Marzipan Pig and most famously a series about Frances The Badger.
Author Anthony Burgess described his post-apocalyptic masterpiece Riddley Walker as ‘what literature is meant to be’ .
Indeed shortly after its publication in 1980, it got a front-page rave review in the New York Times Book Review.
The novel is set in a desolate, post-nuclear holocaust England and is written in fractured English.
Hoban’s 16th novel for adults, Angelica Lost And Found, was published last year to enthusiastic reviews.
An online group for Hoban fans – known as Kraken – has existed since 2002 and celebrates his birthday by placing favourite quotations from his books in public places.