Lara Kate Jones, was born in Ashby-de-la-Zouch, Leicestershire and spent her childhood in Shropshire. Both of her parents were writers. Her father was Ivan Jones the best selling fiction writer and poet, and her mother Mal Lewis Jones was also a children's writer. Lara was the first born of their three children. Lara studied art at Canterbury College of Art and then at Cheltenham College and went on to work at the Royal Academy and the Inkshed artists' agency before becoming a full time writer and illustrator.

She published many books, but is best remembered for her Poppy Cat series which are published by Macmillan/Campbell Books. These books, for the very young, have sold in 20 languages and nearly two million copies. They are published in Brazil, Spain, France, Italy, Mexico, Finland, Denmark, Ireland, Holland and Japan as well as other countries. Television animation rights are currently in production with Nick Junior.

Jones was awarded the 2004 Sheffield Baby Book prize (bronze) and then a Booktrust Early Years Award for "Poppy Cat's Farm" in 2005.

"Poppy Cat Hug" won the Bronze Award at the Right Start Best Toy Award 2006 and

"Swap the Scene Poppy Cat" is a recent Bronze Award winner of the Practical Parenting Award 2006.

Good Night, Poppy Cat was acclaimed as one of the best ten books for the under fives in the Independent, by Boyd Tonkin.

The recently published, "Poppy Cat's First Word Book" has been highly praised by pre-school magazine containing over 50 words which toddlers can learn.

She illustrated numerous other books, including her own picture books, "I Love Hugs" and "I Love My Potty". Other books illustrated by Jones include "Mermaid Poems" (Clare Bevan), Mermaid Stories, "Fairy Poems" and "Fairy Stories" (all published by MacMillan) as well as "Babies Can" by Ian Whybrow and "Pip and the Edge of Heaven" by Elizabeth Liddle (Lion, 2002). Her final book was I Want a Mini Tiger written by Joyce Dunbar and published by Macmillan Books. She also had other projects in the pipeline, notably a book with Orchard Books, for which she had done initial drawings.

Whilst at College she met fellow artist Shaun Clarke who she married in 2003, they had two children.

Lara didn't support cruelty to living things, and from the early age of five was a vegetarian.

Her early death was the result of malignant melanoma.