Thalia Kids' Book Club: Jonathan Stroud's Heroes of the Valley

The author of The Bartimaeus Trilogy discusses his new novel that follows a young shepherd on a hero's quest. Along the way he encounters highway robbers, terrifying monsters, and the truth about the legends he grew up listening to.

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Jonathan Stroud was born in Bedford, England in 1970 and grew up in St. Albans, a town near London where he now lives with his wife and kids. As a child, fantasy stories and drawing were his passions, so much so that when he fell ill at the age of nine, he said, “books littered my bedroom floor like bones in a lion’s cave.” Later, after going to University to study English Literature, and working with other writers at a publishing company, Jonathan decided to write his own books. He has written 17 books, including The Bartimaeus Trilogy, Buried Fire, and his most recent, Heroes of the Valley. The Bartimaeus Trilogy—consisting of The Amulet of Samarkand, The Golem’s Eye, and Ptolemy’s Gate—has been a bestseller around the world.

Matthew Cody is the author of Powerless, a superhero fantasy for young readers to be published by Knopf in October 2009. His short works can be found in various places in print and online, such as on McSweeneys.net and in the upcoming book The Leonardo Variations, an anthology of stories to benefit the prestigious Clarion Writers’ Workshop. Matthew divides his time between writing and teaching English and is currently working on his next novel for Knopf. Matthew lives in Manhattan with his wife and son. You can visit him on the web at matthewcody.com.