Geoffrey Trease

(Robert) Geoffrey Trease FRSL (11 August 1909 in Nottingham – 27 January 1998 in Bath) was a prolific British writer who published 113 books, mainly for children, between 1934 (Bows Against the Barons) and 1997 (Cloak for a Spy). His work has been translated into 20 languages. His grandfather was a historian, and was one of the main influences in his work. He is best known for the children's novel Cue for Treason (1940).

Trease is best known for writing children's historical novels, whose content reflects his insistence on historically correct backgrounds, which he meticulously researched. His ground-breaking study Tales Out of School (1949) pioneered the idea that children's literature should be a serious subject for study and debate. When he began his career, his radical viewpoint was a change from the conventional and often jingoistic tone of most children's literature of the time, and he was one of the first authors who deliberately set out to appeal to both boys and girls and to feature strong leading characters of both sexes.

Trease was born in Nottingham in 1909. His family were wine merchants, but from an early age he decided to become a writer. During his school days at Nottingham High School he wrote stories, poems, and a three-act play which the school performed. He won a Classics scholarship to Oxford University and, although he loved university life, he found the tuition dull. After a year he resigned his scholarship and left Oxford for London, intent on becoming a writer. In London, Trease worked at helping slum children. He also joined a left-wing group called the "Promethean Society" whose other members included Hugh Gordon Porteus and Desmond Hawkins.

Trease started to fulfil his ambition to be a writer with the publication of the children’s book Bows Against the Barons in 1934. This was the first of his many historical novels and heralded an approach to writing for young people that was quite radical. Through exciting plots, strong characters (female as well as male), and meticulous attention to detail, he introduced his readers to a historical event or period, enabling them to absorb history effortlessly. His sense of fairness and belief in equality for all is a theme explored in many of his books and, within their historical settings, the discerning reader will recognize many parallels with contemporary issues.

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