Eleanor Farjeon was an English author of stories, poems, and plays, primarily known for her enduring contributions to children's literature. She was born on 13 February 1881 in London and died on 5 June 1965 in Hampstead, London. Farjeon came from a literary and artistic family; her father was a novelist, and her mother was the daughter of an American actor. Encouraged to write from the age of five, she was educated at home and spent much of her childhood surrounded by books, an experience she later detailed in her autobiography, A Nursery in the Nineties (1935). Throughout her career, she wrote for both adults and children, publishing poetry, fantasy novels, plays, and collections of short stories.

Among her most famous works are the hymn Morning Has Broken, written in 1931, and the short story collection The Little Bookroom (1955). The Little Bookroom, which she considered her best work, earned her two of the most prestigious awards in children's literature: the Carnegie Medal from the Library Association in 1955 and the inaugural Hans Christian Andersen Award in 1956. Her other notable creations include the wandering minstrel tales Martin Pippin in the Apple Orchard (1921) and its sequel, Martin Pippin in the Daisy Field (1937).

While Farjeon was not herself a creator of anime or manga in the direct sense of writing or directing animated works, her original literary work has been adapted into the medium. The short story The King's Daughter Cries for the Moon, from The Little Bookroom, was adapted into a Japanese and Korean co-produced comical fantasy animation feature film titled The Moon - Tsuki ga Hoshii to Ōjo-sama ga Naita. The animation studio Union Cho announced plans for the film, which centers on a princess who wishes to reach the Moon, leading to chaos in the kingdom when she disappears. This adaptation directly connects Farjeon's original authorship to the anime industry.

More significantly, Farjeon's creative identity and themes have had a documented influence on one of the most renowned figures in anime history. Her work is cited as an influence by Japanese animator and Studio Ghibli co-founder Hayao Miyazaki. While the specific ways in which her writing influenced his films are not detailed in the available records, the acknowledgment of her impact on such a major creator establishes her significance within the broader context of Japanese animation. Her recurring themes, often found in her children's stories, include magic, the mockery of adult behavior, and tales rooted in folklore and fantasy, which resonate with the thematic interests of many anime creators. Her legacy in children's literature continues to be honored through the annual Eleanor Farjeon Award, presented by the Children's Book Circle in the United Kingdom.