Mother-daughter relationships are notoriously difficult, but Rhiannon Lassiter and her mother Mary Hoffman are exceptionally close. They not only see eye to eye about the war in Iraq -- they also joined forces to produce an anthology of war stories and poems for children, Lines in the Sand.

Dozens of well-known children's writers and illustrators, from Michael Morpurgo to Kevin Crossley-Holland, produced new stories for the book. There are poems by Carol Ann Duffy, Brian Patten and Michael Rosen, plus illustrations from Shirley Hughes, Korky Paul and Chris Riddell.

Mary Hoffman, creator of the picture book Amazing Grace, knows many writers through her children's books magazine Armadillo. She moved to Carterton a few years ago from London -- partly to be nearer her daughter, who lives in Oxford. She said: "We both call each other at least once a week, both being writers and both working from home. We talk about how our work is going."

Rhiannon had been at the big demonstration in London and felt the later protests were less effective. She said: "We both had the idea that we could use our talents as writers, not just saying we deplored what was happening in Iraq, but trying to make something creative out of it."

Michael Rosen had written an anti-war letter to the Guardian, signed by 550 writers. Everyone on the list was asked for a contribution and the floodgates opened.

Rhiannon said: "People replied in their thousands. We mentioned it at all our activities, including the children's book conference in Bologna in April."

The publisher John Nicoll, widower of Frances Lincoln, agreed to waive publishing costs -- a most unusual event. He also paid the £10,000 advance to the Unicef emergency appeal for the children of Iraq. Most of the original art is being auctioned, with the proceeds also going to the charity.

Morpurgo's piece, For Carlos: A Letter From Your Father, is an account of the Falklands War seen through the eyes of an Argentinean soldier shortly before his death, writing to his newborn son.

Crossley-Holland donated a chapter from his latest novel in the award-winning Arthur trilogy, while Laurence Anholt wrote an allegory for younger readers called Eco-Wolf and the War-Pigs. Rhiannon said: "We were in doubt about how much we could ask people for, but in the end we got completely brazen and the response was incredible."

They are adamant that children can cope with hard material, but they were careful not to preach a gospel of despair. Rhiannon said: "We end with Seeds of Hope, which is much more positive -- pieces about the prospect of peace and how it can be achieved, and the people who are going to be making that peace, which is really children."

Mary said: "If you believe, as we do, that this war was wrong, I think children have the right to know that some adults disagree with the decisions that were taken."

Mary, a full-time writer for most of her adult life, has more than 200 books to her name, including several best-sellers such as Amazing Grace, about a black girl who wants to play the part of Peter Pan in a school play.

Rhiannon, 26, is still struggling to make a living as an author, but is regarded by publishers Oxford University Press as part of a promising new wave of young writers. She wrote her first novel at 17, and her books have been translated into ten languages. The first two books in her Hex fantasy trilogy were accepted for publication shortly after her 19th birthday, and she combined her writing with studying at Oxford University.

She admits that it was her mother's example that gave her the confidence to think that she might become a writer.

Mary said: "We have had to put our own writing careers on hold to produce the anthology, but this is our war work.

"The war is supposed to be over now, but people are still interested. The repercussions are still being felt, especially as they continue not to find weapons of mass destruction."

Despite the huge pressures of the rushed publication, they feel the project has strengthened their relationship. Mary said: "We have lived and breathed this book for the last two and a half months. I don't think we could have done it any quicker.

"It is the first time we have ever worked together, but once we got started, we ran on until we stopped."

Lines in the Sand: New Writing on War and Peace, for children of 8+, is published by Frances Lincoln at £4.99. All profits go to Unicef. Rhiannon Lassiter's Borderland is published by Oxford University Press in July at £4.99. Mary Hoffman's Stravaganza: City of Masks is published by Bloomsbury at £10.99, but will be out in paperback in July.