Taking readers 'an extra two steps'

"I've read up on magic, and I think it sets you free, and it gives you hope.  You can explore worlds you didn't know existed.  It stretches your imagination . . . and gives you a sense of wonder." -  Jenny Nimmo 

Born in Windsor, England on this date in 1944, Nimmo has stretched kids’ imaginations for 60 years, writing dozens of fantasy and magical adventure novels.   Her two major series:  The Magician Trilogy and Children of the Red King, have been published in 9 languages around the globe.

Nimmo has lived in Wales for most of her writing life and many of her books are based in Welsh myth.  An only child, her father died when she was 5 and she escaped her grief by becoming first a voracious reader and then a devoted writer. 

  

Writing first for herself, she soon realized she had the talent to also entertain others with her words, and she’s been doing so since age 15.   She said she gravitated toward writing fantasy because she always thought a magical world would be, for most kids, a special place to think about visiting.

“Every book that you pick up takes you a step away from your real world,” she said, “but if you read a book about magic, it takes you an extra two steps.”