Testing the limits of his readers' courage with fantastical tales of mystery, mummies and vampires, Thomas Brezina's books grab the attention of his young audience.

For many Chinese children, his book A Mystery for You and The Tiger Team is their first experience of really falling in love with a collection of printed words and pictures. Brezina's stories have turned countless Chinese children into readers - the Austrian author is among the most popular foreign writers in China.

In fact, children's authors now hold two of the top 10 positions on the official chart of best-selling foreign authors in the Chinese mainland and only J.K. Rowling (creator of the Harry Potter series) outsells Brezina. The 2012 Foreign Writers Rich List, ranked according to royalties earned in China, puts Brezina in 7th place, having earned 2.6 million yuan ($419,120). The Austrian writer has also been showered with international prizes, including the 2003 National Book Award China.

Why do his books enjoy such popularity in the land of the dragon?

"I think the reason is that my books introduced Chinese kids to the topics of vampires, mummies and a lot of other interesting characters," he says. "Mystery and detective fiction for children are genres which were new to the young Chinese public. So, from what I was told, the stories came at the right time. Mysteries are some of the lightest and most addictive types of fiction; kids having to hunt for mystery clues makes for careful reading."

Also famous for his series The Knickerbocker Gang and his stories about a talking bike called Tom Turbo, Brezina has written 550 books, which are well known among European children too. They have sold more than 40 million copies worldwide.

The 50-year-old writer from Vienna is so passionate about his vocation that when he is in the middle of writing a story, he says, he hardly eats.

"It's not because I can't, it's just because I forget. I am so intrigued and so involved, I forget about time and anything else," he says.

A couple of his most popular titles have been made into movies: Tiger Team and The Knickerbocker Gang. The former has sold more than 18 million copies internationally, while the first 16 books of the latter have also been made into a television series.

Another show based on his books, Tom Turbo, is now in its twentieth season. Overall, Brezina's stories have led to the creation of 40 different TV shows, mostly for Austrian television.

Brezina's books are interactive and have a special decoder attached. Sometimes, they include activities for the young readers, who are introduced to the use of the decoder and other special features of the books directly at the bookstore.

A big believer in reading aloud to children, he has performed many public readings, including in China. "I have been to China twice. I have always had a great time there," he says.

"Chinese kids told me that the three Tiger-Kids in the books are role models for them. They love their courage and independence. I love describing kids who go on big adventures and have to prove their courage and wit."

The characters in Brezina's books are usually based on someone he's met or children he knows, with a part of himself in there too.

"Everything I see or experience can possibly trigger something new."

In his own childhood Brezina says he was something of an "outsider", more interested in puppet theater and stories than soccer.

He does not have children of his own. "But you never know," says Brezina, who has been the official ambassador of UNICEF Austria since 1996.

One of his concerns is children's education.

"It's too focused on knowledge and discipline," he says. "We should provide more education for the soul and the heart. Social skills should become a subject in school and we as adults should teach kids the art of happiness."

For China Daily

(China Daily 04/07/2013 page4)