Anthony Horowitz: Author Profile

Anthony Horowitz

Anthony Horowitz, born on 5th April 1956, is one of the UK’s most prolific authors – and is soon to become a household name with what promises to be the publishing event of the year.

For the very first time, the Conan Doyle estate has authorised a new Sherlock Holmes novel, and Anthony Horowitz’s The House of Silk will be published on 1.11.11.

 

House of Silk

 

Written by Dr Watson in a retirement home a year after the death of Sherlock Holmes, The House of Silk tells a tale that was, explains Watson, just too shocking and monstrous to reveal until now. “It is no exaggeration to say it could tear apart the very fabric of society”.

At a very healthy 85,000 words, The House of Silk will be published in a large hardback edition, and, following the success of the recent blockbuster film and the contemporary BBC series, seems set to become a publishing sensation.

It is already possible to preorder The House of Silk from Waterstone’s.

 

Anthony Horowitz’s previous works are many and varied. He is perhaps best known as a children’s author, and his action-adventure spy novels featuring the teenage Alex Rider have proved enormously successful in encouraging reluctant teenage boys to develop an interest in and a love of reading.

He has also written a number of short stories and adult novels, adapted many of Agatha Christie’s Hercule Poirot novels for the television, created and written the ITV series Foyle’s War, and written most of the early episodes of Midsomer Murders.

 

Alex Rider series

Stormbreaker

Point Blanc

Skeleton Key

Eagle Strike

Scorpia

Ark Angel 

Snakehead

Crocodile Tears

Scorpia Rising

The Diamond Brothers series

(humorous detective stories for 8-12 year olds)

 

The Power of Five series

(fantasy horror adventure novels for teenagers)

The Guardian Children’s Fiction Prize

The Guardian

 

The Guardian Children’s Fiction Prize has been awarded each year since 1967, and is judged exclusively by children’s authors. No author can win the prize more than once. Previous winners have included Ted Hughes, Philip Pullman, Jacqueline Wilson and Anne Fine. Each year’s winner is awarded £1,500.

The 2010 contenders were judged by Linda Buckley-Archer, Jenny Downham and the 2009 prizewinner, Mal Peet.

 

2010 winner:

Ghost Hunter: Chronicles of Ancient Darkness book 6
Michelle Paver

 

2010 shortlist:

Now
Morris Gleitzman

 

Unhooking the Moon
Gregory Hughes

 

The Ogre of Oglefort
Eva Ibbotson

 

2009 winner:

Exposure
Mal Peet

 

2008 winner:

The Knife of Never Letting Go (Chaos Walking)
Patrick Ness

 

2007 winner:

Finding Violet Park
Jenny Valentine

 

2006 winner:

A Darkling Plain (Mortal Engines Quartet)
Philip Reeve

 

2005 winner:

The New Policeman (New Policeman Trilogy)
Kate Thompson

The City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau: Book Review

The City Of Ember
Jeanne DuPrau

 

Hundreds of years ago, the Builders built the city of Ember, containing everything possible needed for human survival. But now the storerooms are nearly empty, corruption is spreading through the city, and the lights are fading…

Lina and Doon’s world is teetering on the brink of darkness, and the future of their civilisation hangs in the balance. Only by deciphering fragments of an ancient parchment will they be able to uncover the truth about their existence and forge a new future for the people of Ember.

The City Of Ember is a haunting and gripping fantasy adventure for 8-12 year olds, set in an all-too-convincing and vividly-portrayed world.

Winnie-the-Pooh by A.A.Milne: Book Review

Winnie-the-Pooh
A. A. Milne

 

A.A.Milne’s quirky and endearing tales of everybody’s favourite bear and the friends who live with him in the Hundred Acre Wood, have captivated children and their parents for over 80 years.

From Woozle-catching to Heffalump-hunting, from birthday parties to expeditions to the North Pole, the adventures of the honey-loving Pooh, the excitable Piglet, the wise Owl and the gloomy Eeyore are the perfect bedtime stories to enjoy with your child.

Based on the real nursery toys that belonged to A.A.Milne’s son, Christopher Robin, and exquisitely illustrated by E.H.Shepard, Winnie-the-Pooh is classic children’s book that has been translated into 31 different languages.

Charlotte’s Web by E.B.White: Book Review

Charlotte’s Web
E.B. White

 

This charming and captivating classic about a young girl, a pig called Wilbur and a very special spider has been making children laugh and cry for generations.

Life on the Arable farm is turned upside down with the arrival of the remarkably wise and intelligent Charlotte. With dedication and expertise, Charlotte uses her skills to save Wilbur’s life in this beautiful story of friendship, sacrifice and loyalty.

Matilda by Roald Dahl: Book Review

Matilda
Roald Dahl

 

Matilda is a rather extraordinary girl.

Her very unpleasant parents looked at her as nothing more than a scab and paid her as little attention as they possibly could. Yet by the age of one and a half, Matilda’s speech was perfect, by the age of three she had taught herself to read, and at the age of four she was secretly visiting the library to borrow books like Great Expectations, Jane Eyre and Pride and Prejudice.

But as she gradually comes to discover, Matilda has an even more unusual gift – one that will enable her to hold her own against the cruellest of bullies.

A magical and captivating tale about good, evil, special powers and the triumph of the underdog.

The Witches by Roald Dahl: Book Review

The Witches
Roald Dahl

 

‘In fairy-tales, witches always wear silly black hats and black cloaks, and they ride on broomsticks.

But this is not a fairy-tale. This is about REAL WITCHES.’

Real witches dress in ordinary clothes, look like ordinary women, live in ordinary houses and work in ordinary jobs. Real witches, on average, squish, squiggle and make one child a week disappear. There are probably about a hundred witches still in England – maybe the woman who sat opposite you on the bus this morning, the lady who offered you a sweet in the street this afternoon, or even, just possibly, your lovely school-teacher.

Fortunately our young narrator knows a lot about the little signs, habits and signals that all witches have in common as his Grandmamma is something of a witch expert. Which is just as well, because when he accidentally stumbles upon their Annual Meeting, he is better equipped than most children to deal with a rather terrifying situation…

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl: Book Review

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
Roald Dahl

 

Charlie Bucket’s life is turned upsidedown when finds a golden ticket and wins the trip of a lifetime around the famous chocolate factory of Mr Willy Wonka.

Charlie and 4 other lucky winners enter an extraordinary world of Oompa-Loompas, chocolate rivers, everlasting gobstoppers, marshmallow pillows, cavity-filling caramels, television chocolate and great glass elevators in this humorous morality tale of just deserts and dreams come true.

With its delightful cast of characters and its outrageously creative plot, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory should be included on every child’s literary menu.

Anne of Green Gables by L.M.Montgomery: Book Review

Anne of Green Gables
L. Montgomery

 

This, the first novel in L.M.Montgomery’s classic Canadian coming-of-age stories, introduces the unforgettable Anne Shirley – a skinny, red-haired, romantic, imaginative, hot-headed, irrepressible orphan with a knack for getting into trouble.

When brother and sister Matthew and Marilla Cuthbert accidentally acquire an 11-year-old girl instead of the boy they were wanting to help about the farm, life at Green Gables is quickly turned upsidedown.

A funny and heart-warming tale about friendship, love, relationships, growing up, hopes and dreams, that is as powerful and poignant today as it was 86 years ago.

The BFG by Roald Dahl: Book Review

The BFG
Roald Dahl

 

Roald Dahl created some of the most imaginative and unforgettable scenarios in children’s literature, and The BFG is one of his masterpieces.

From its opening chapter, ‘The Witching Hour’, he plunges his young readers into a fantastical, fully-realised and vividly-described world of giants, dream-catching and snozzcumbers.

We are taken on an phenomenal journey with the sensible, practical Sophie (a character based on Roald Dahl’s own granddaughter) and the hopelessly muddled but well-meaning Big Friendly Giant, that takes them out of Giant Country to Buckingham Palace, as the unlikely duo attempt to put a stop to nightly child-gobbling.

Magical, terrifying, hilarious and heart-warming, The BFG is a timeless classic that will continue to enthral and entertain children for years to come.