Stefan Bachmann is a Swiss–American author of

children's literature Children's literature or juvenile literature includes stories, books, magazines, and poems that are created for children. In addition to conventional literary genres, modern children's literature is classified by the intended age of the reade ...

non-fiction Non-fiction (or nonfiction) is any document or content (media), media content that attempts, in good faith, to convey information only about the real life, real world, rather than being grounded in imagination. Non-fiction typically aims to pre ...

, and

short stories A short story is a piece of prose fiction. It can typically be read in a single sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the old ...

, as well as a composer and artist. He is best known for his children's novels, including his debut, '' The Peculiar'', a gothic alternate history novel published by

HarperCollins HarperCollins Publishers LLC is a British–American publishing company that is considered to be one of the "Big Five (publishers), Big Five" English-language publishers, along with Penguin Random House, Hachette Book Group USA, Hachette, Macmi ...

Life and career

Bachmann was born in

Colorado Colorado is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States. It is one of the Mountain states, sharing the Four Corners region with Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. It is also bordered by Wyoming to the north, Nebraska to the northeast, Kansas ...

in the United States, and grew up in

Zürich Zurich (; ) is the list of cities in Switzerland, largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is in north-central Switzerland, at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich. , the municipality had 448,664 inhabitants. The ...

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

. At age 11 he began studying classical music at the Zürich Conservatory, where he studied piano under the tutelage of Carl Rütti. As a teenager, he competed in musical competitions, winning national awards for his compositions and performances. He later studied theory and composition at the Zürich University of the Arts, and lived in

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

, and

Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

. After university, he completed his obligatory military service, undergoing basic training in

Bülach Bülach () is a historic town and a municipality in Switzerland in the canton of Zürich. It is the administrative capital of Bülach district. It is situated in the Glatt Valley (German: ''Glattal'') to the east of the small river Glatt and ab ...

, before working as an officer's aid in various locations across Switzerland. As of 2022, he serves as a board member and co-president of Autillus, the Swiss Association of Children's Authors and Illustrators. He currently teaches creative writing at the Junges Literaturlabor in Zürich. Together with Jyoti Guptara, he is the co-founder o
"Storytelling Schweiz"
a national literacy and communication outreach program and competition that launched in 2023. As of 2023, he also serves as a member of the board of the Leopold Bachmann Foundation.

Writing

Bachmann's debut novel, '' The Peculiar'', was bought by

in a bidding war when he was eighteen years old. It was followed by a sequel, ''The Whatnot''. Further books include the short story collection ''The Cabinet of Curiosities: 36 Tales Brief and Sinister,'' young adult novel ''A Drop of Night,'' and children's fantasy ''Cinders & Sparrows,'' all published by HarperCollins in the United States''.''

Reception

His books have received critical acclaim from ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'', ''

Publishers Weekly ''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of ...

'', ''

Kirkus ''Kirkus Reviews'' is an American book review magazine founded in 1933 by Virginia Kirkus. The magazine's publisher, Kirkus Media, is headquartered in New York City. ''Kirkus Reviews'' confers the annual Kirkus Prize to authors of fiction, non ...

'', and many others. His writing has been noted for its vivid use of language, as well as often dark subject matter. In 2012, he was chosen as one of ''

Huffington Post ''HuffPost'' (''The Huffington Post'' until 2017, itself often abbreviated as ''HPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and covers ...

's'' "18 Under 18" alongside

Malala Yousafzai Malala Yousafzai (; , pronunciation: ; born 12 July 1997) is a Pakistani female education activist, film and television producer, and the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize laureate at the age of 17. She is the youngest Nobel Prize laureate in history, ...

and Tavi Gavinson. In 2017, he was chosen for the Aarhus 39, a selection of the best writers under the age of 40 in Europe, presented at the International Hay Festival in Denmark. His writing has been published in fifteen countries.

Awards

Bibliography

Children's books

* '' The Peculiar'' (

Greenwillow Books HarperCollins Publishers LLC is a British–American publishing company that is considered to be one of the "Big Five (publishers), Big Five" English-language publishers, along with Penguin Random House, Hachette Book Group USA, Hachette, Macmi ...

, 2012) * ''The Whatnot'' (Greenwillow Books/HarperCollins, 2013) * ''Cinders and Sparrows'' (Greenwillow Books/HarperCollins, 2020)

Young adult

* ''A Drop of Night'' (Greenwillow Books/HarperCollins, 2016) * ''Release the Wolves'' (forthcoming from Greenwillow Books/HarperCollins, 2024)

Nonfiction

* ''The Secret Life of Hidden Places'' ( Workman, 2024), in collaboration with April Genevieve Tucholke

Anthologies

* ''The Cabinet of Curiosities: 36 Tales Brief & Sinister'' (Greenwillow Books/HarperCollins, 2014) — in collaboration with

Claire Legrand Claire Legrand is an American writer of children's and young adult literature, including novels and short stories. She is best known for her ''New York Times'' bestselling ''Empirium'' trilogy, published by Sourcebooks Fire. Personal life Legr ...

, Katherine Catmull, and

Emma Trevayne Emma Trevayne is a British (expatriate American) speculative fiction author. Novels Trevayne's debut novel ''Coda'' released in May 2013. A young adult cyberpunk novel, the narrative follows Anthem, an eighteen-year-old boy who lives in a world ...

; illustrated by Alexander Jansson * ''Slasher Girls & Monster Boys'' ( Dial, 2015) — short story collection edited by April Genevieve Tucholke, with stories by Bachmann, Marie Lu, Leigh Bradugo,

Jay Kristoff Jay Kristoff (born 11 November 1973) is an Australian author of fantasy and science fiction novels. As of 2022, he has published 16 novels, both for adult readers and young adults. He currently resides in Melbourne. Biography Kristoff was bor ...

, etc. * ''Quest: Stories of Journeys from Around Europe'' (

Alma Books Alma Books is a publishing house based in Richmond, London, founded in 2005 by Alessandro Gallenzi and Elisabetta Minervini, the founders of Hesperus Press. It publishes mainly fiction, both by authors from the English-speaking world and in tra ...

, 2017) — edited by

Daniel Hahn Daniel Hahn (born 26 November 1973) is a British writer, editor and translator. He is the author of a number of works of non-fiction, including the history book ''The Tower Menagerie'', and one of the editors of The Ultimate Book Guide, a ser ...

, with stories by Bachmann,

Katherine Rundell Katherine Rundell (born 10 July 1987) is an English author and academic. She is the author of ''Impossible Creatures'', named Waterstones Book of the Year for 2023. She is also the author of ''Rooftoppers'', which in 2015 won both the overall ...

, Maria Turtschaninoff, etc. * ''The Dagon Collection'' (

PS Publishing PS Publishing is an independent book publisher based in Hornsea, UK. Background PS Publishing was founded in 1999 by Peter Crowther.Jesse Bullington Jesse Bullington is an American fantasy writer from Boulder, Colorado. He has also published as Alex Marshall. Biography Bullington grew up in Pennsylvania, before his family moved to the Netherlands, and then back to the United States. In 2 ...

, Sylvia Moreno-Garcia, etc.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bachmann, Stefan Living people 21st-century Swiss novelists 21st-century American novelists American male novelists Swiss male novelists Swiss children's writers Swiss children's literature Writers of Gothic fiction 1993 births