Max Eilenberg

Max Eilenberg writes mainly for children. He is the author of original picture books (Cowboy Kid and Squeak’s Good Idea) and retellings of classic fairy tales. His stories revolve around simple emotions and anxieties, and play with language, rhythm and humour. He particularly enjoys the craft of making picture books, working with illustrators so that text and pictures support, develop and amplify one another in a seamless whole; and the critical response he most values is when a child says — again, read it again!

In addition to his children’s books, Max Eilenberg has published essays on a range of subjects including art, epilepsy and contemporary American fiction. Most recently he has been working on a book on the history of the representation of Magna Carta, tracing the background of the document and its political uses and abuses over the last 800 years.

Max Eilenberg studied English at York, followed by research and teaching at Oxford, before making a career in publishing. He held senior editorial and management positions at Heinemann, Secker & Warburg and Methuen, and has worked with many prizewinning authors. He continues to act as a freelance publishing consultant and editor. He lives in north London with his partner of 30 years, plays guitar in a pub band, ranks Bob Dylan and Thomas Pynchon among his literary heroes, and clings to the hope that Arsenal will one day win the league again.