Australian writer Garth Nix was weaned on fantasy novels; it is no coincidence he grew up to write such popular titles as Sabriel and Shade's Children. "My mother was reading The Lord of the Rings when she was pregnant with me," Nix told Authors and Artists for Young Adults (AAYA) in an interview. "So I absorbed this master work of fantasy in utero, as it were. Later on I became a great fan of Tolkien's stories." Nix's explanation of this early influence is partly tongue-in-cheek, but it is clear from his writings that there is nothing fanciful about his dedication to his craft. "One of the best fantasies of this or any other year," is how a reviewer in Voice of Youth Advocates described Sabriel. A contributor in Publishers Weekly called that same novel "excellent high fantasy."

With only a handful of novels to his credit, Nix has...