Piers Torday used to work in theatre and TV but now writes for children. His books include The Last Wild trilogy (Guardian Children’s Fiction Prize) and There May Be a Castle. It was a Children’s Book of the Year in The Times and has just come out in paperback. Piers is also the author of The Frozen Sea and The Lost Magician and his latest book, The Wild Before published in 2021 is the prequel to The Last Wild trilogy.

Piers also recently completed his father’s (Paul Torday, Salmon Fishing in the Yemen), final unfinished novel, The Death of an Owl. 

You can also read some of Piers' short stories in Winter Magic (curated by Abi Elphinstone), Wisp of Wisdom and Scoop magazine.

Piers' theatre projects include the adaptation of John Masefield’s The Box of Delights which opened at Wilton’s Music Hall in Christmas 2017. It was revived for a second time in Christmas 2018 and will be the RSC Christmas show at Stratford-upon-Avon in 2023.

Other plays include Christmas Carol, featuring the first ever female Scrooge on the London stage, and The Child in the Snow, based on Elizabeth Gaskell’s ghost story, “The Old Nurse’s Tale” and The Wind in the Willows Wilton’s. 

Piers has reviewed children’s books for The Guardian and The Spectator, and judged both the Guardian Children’s Fiction Prize and the Costa Children’s Book Award. He lives in North London with his husband and a very naughty dog.

Piers gave a wonderful talk as part of BookFest 2016 to the delight of both the children and adults in attendance and was a reading helper volunteer with us for 10 years in North London.

Find out more about Piers' books here

One of the highlights of my every working week is going to my local primary school, West Green Primary in Wood Green, and working with three brilliant children on their reading and general confidence. I have been a reading helper with Coram Beanstalk since 2012, and I can’t recommend it enough. It’s a wonderful community doing great work, and more often than not, the children leave you feeling uplifted with their capacity for wonder, change and development. You learn something every session.