Sage, Angie

PERSONAL: Born in London, England; children: Laurie, Lois. Education: B.A. Hobbies and other interests: Sailing, the sea, boats, Cornwall, rock music.

ADDRESSES: Home—Cornwall, England. Agent—c/o Author Mail, Katherine Tegen Books, 1350 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10019.

CAREER: Writer

WRITINGS:

Monkeys in the Jungle, E. P. Dutton (New York, NY), 1989.

Stack-a-Car: Read the Books! Make the Toy!, David & Charles Children's Books (London, England), 1999.

Give a Little Love: Stories of Love and Friendship, illustrated by Valeria Petrone, Element Books Ltd. (Scranton, PA), 2001.

Magyk ("Septimus Heap" series; fantasy novel), illustrated by Mark Zug, Katherine Tegen Books (New York, NY), 2005.

Flyte ("Septimus Heap" series; fantasy novel), illustrated by Mark Zug, Katherine Tegen Books, 2006.

FOR CHILDREN; WITH CHRIS SAGE

The Trouble with Babies, Viking Kestrel (New York, NY), 1989.

Happy Baby, Dial Books for Young Readers (New York, NY), 1990.

Sleepy Baby, Dial Books for Young Readers (New York, NY), 1990.

That's Mine, That's Yours, Viking (New York, NY), 1991.

FOR CHILDREN; SELF-ILLUSTRATED

In My Home, Dial Books for Young Readers (New York, NY), 1997.

On the Move, Dial Books for Young Readers (New York, NY), 1997.

Molly and the Birthday Party, Peachtree (Atlanta, GA), 2001.

Molly at the Dentist Peachtree (Atlanta, GA), 2001.

SIDELIGHTS: Angie Sage diverged from an early study of medicine to become a children's author and illustrator. She trained as a radiographer and was scheduled to undertake medical study at the Royal Free Hospital, but decided to opt for art school instead.

Sage's works range from books for the youngest children to substantial novels for middle-grade readers. In Happy Baby, a board book for toddlers created with Chris Sage, an appealingly drawn baby goes through the activities of his happy day. A single sentence on each page describes what the baby is doing in simple terms, and the simplified drawing style makes the actions clear. Similarly, Sleepy Baby follows a drowsy tot as sleep approaches. In a playful twist, the babies' demeanor changes abruptly on the last page: sleepy baby is suddenly wide awake, and happy baby wails out a complaint against the world. The books' pleasing colors and first-person narration "are sure to draw children in," noted Diane Roback and Richard Donahue in Publishers Weekly.

Molly and the Birthday Party is a lift-the-flap-format book that allows children to look under the flaps to find out what Molly the Monster is doing next. When Molly attends Olly's birthday party, she does not want to give up the present she has brought. She plays games and wins a prize, but only after she sees Olly's other friends give him presents is she ready to offer hers. In Molly at the Dentist, the reluctant Molly resists letting the dentist examine her teeth. When he takes out a small dental mirror, however, Molly agrees to have a look along with him. Her reward is a new toothbrush which she proudly takes home. School Library Journal reviewer Laura Scott called Molly's adventures "Treats for storytime or laptime."

Sage tackles the sometimes tricky subject of sharing in That's Mine, That's Yours. An older sister butts heads with her baby sister when the younger of the pair becomes more interested in the older's belongings than her own. The older sister "displays admirable patience" as she tries to explain to her sibling that certain objects are "mine," and other objects are "yours," observed Donahue and Roback in another Publishers Weekly review. At first, the baby fails to grasp the concept, and tugging matches between the sisters ensue. Kindly big sister finally gives in, and in the end little sister shares too when the duo lie down for a nap in little sister's crib. Donahue and Roback called the book a "good choice for toddlers as well as older siblings."

Magyk, the first book in the "Septimus Heap" series for middle-school readers, introduces the magically gifted Septimus, born with powers only given to the seventh son of a seventh son. Surprisingly, Septimus is "killed off" in the first paragraph of his first book, taken quickly away by a midwife who declares him dead. Ten years later, as a powerful necromancer named DomDaniel arrives at the home of young Jenna, she learns that she is not a member of the Heap family after all, but is a princess who was hidden among the raucous family of six boys a decade earlier. As Jenna and her protector, ExtraOrdinary Wizard Marcia Overstrand, flee the menacing DomDaniel, other members of the Heap family join the duo, among them the unremarkable-looking Boy 412. Soon, however, Boy 412 demonstrates stunning powers and awesome magical potential, leading readers to believe that perhaps the infant Septimus was declared dead a little too early. Though the "Septimus Heap" series invited immediate comparisons to J. K. Rowling's "Harry Potter" novels, "scores of less-jaded youngsters will lose themselves happily in Sage's fluent, charismatic story-telling" and character development, commented Booklist reviewer Jennifer Mattson. A Kirkus Reviews contributor called Magyk "a quick-reading, stand-alone, deliciously spellbinding series opener."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Booklist, March 15, 2005, Jennifer Mattson, review of Magyk, p. 1295.

Christian Parenting Today, November-December, 2001, review of Molly and the Birthday Party and Molly at the Dentist, p. 60.

Kirkus Reviews, January 15, 2005, review of Magyk, p. 125.

Publishers Weekly, June 29, 1990, Diane Roback and Richard Donahue, review of Happy Baby and Sleepy Baby, p. 99; March 22, 1991, Richard Donahue and Diane Roback, review of That's Mine, That's Yours, p. 79; August 9, 1999, "Board Books and Beyond," review of Stack-a-Car: Read the Books! Make the Toy!, p. 355; January 31, 2000, "Love Stories," review of Give a Little Love: Stories of Love and Friendship, p. 109.

School Library Journal, August, 2000, Susan Helpler, review of Give a Little Love: Stories of Love and Friendship, p. 164; November, 2001, Laura Scott, review of Molly and the Birthday Party, p. 136; April, 2005, Steve Engelfried, review of Magyk, p. 140.

Voice of Youth Advocates, April, 2005, review of Magyk, p. 13.