About the Author

Tonke Dragt was born in 1930 in Indonesia. When she was twelve, she was imprisoned in a Japanese camp during the war, where she wrote her very first book using begged and borrowed paper. After the war, she and her family moved to the Netherlands, where she became an art teacher. In 1962 she published her most famous story, The Letter for the King, which won the Children's Book of the Year Award and has been translated into sixteen languages. Its sequel, The Secrets of the Wild Wood, followed in 1965, and will be published by Pushkin Children's Books in 2015. Dragt was awarded the State Prize for Youth Literature in 1976 and was knighted in 2001.

Reviews

The Netherlands' most popular novel, The Letter for the King by Tonke Dragt, a high fantasy for nine-year-olds to teens, was first published in 1962. Fans will be delighted with its sequel, The Secrets of the Wild Wood (Pushkin), which takes Tiuri back into the perilous wood, forefronts some of the female characters and offers intrigue, action and escapism -- Nicolette Jones Sunday Times, Children's Books of the Year Adventures of the classic kind await in The Secrets of the Wild Wood, the sequel to The Letter for the King, Tonke Dragt's unmissable Arthurian-inflected tale written in Dutch in 1962 and recently translated into English by Laura Watkinson. In this one, Tiuri must venture into the Wild Wood in search of a brother knight, and encounter all kinds of dangers Telegraph, Books of the Year A spellbinding tale that will appeal to the young and old Lady This remarkable fantasy series, rich in colour, action and verbal virtuosity, was first published in 1963 and has been translated seamlessly from the Dutch by Laura Watkinson. Between the pages are all the essential and traditional ingredients of a timeless and heroic tale with its motifs of friendship, love, courage, loyalty, chivalry... and vile villainy. Lancashire Evening Post Not many books are genuinely spellbinding, this one is Lovereading4Kids Tiuri's adventures take a supernatural turn as he travels through the wild wood on the trail of a missing knight. It is a place of lost cities, robbers, unreliable princesses and mysterious men in green, all posing challenges to the intrepid hero. [This book] deserves readers of all ages Sunday Express Action-packed drama Daily Mail Gripping, spell-binding sequel Gransnet Thrilling Metro For those stay-in and curl-up days Jewish Chronicle A truly unique fantasy classic that I am thrilled will now reach a whole new audience with its excellent English translation Page to Stage A fascinating and absorbing read that opens up a window into another world... A terrific story of love and courage in the face of change and adversity as well as a gripping fantasy read South China Morning Post The Letter for the King received international recognition with over a million copies sold worldwide. Readers are sure to find this sequel, expertly translated by Laura Watkinson, equally as gripping and enthralling Outside in World