Viennese of the week

Thomas Brezina: Award for children’s book hero

Thomas Brezina has now been honored by Mayor Michael Ludwig at Vienna City Hall.(Bild: Stadt Wien / Christian Jobst)

Star author Thomas Brezina has now been honored by Mayor Michael Ludwig at Vienna City Hall. Our Viennese of the week. 

Exceptional author Thomas Brezina has often heard the phrase "Thank you for a wonderful childhood". Namely from readers who grew up with his stories. The Simmering-born author once said that this was the best award for his work. This week he received another award:

An honor at city hall
Namely the Golden Medal of Merit of the Province of Vienna. Because he has inspired children and young people with his stories with a great sense of responsibility instead of lecturing them. The 63-year-old is considered one of the most successful German-language authors ever. Our Viennese of the week has written more than 600 books, which have sold over 40 million copies and have been translated into 35 languages - even into Chinese. Brezina's breakthrough came in 1990 with "Die Knickerbocker-Bande".

Success on two wheels
Three years later, "Tom Turbo" was created - the world's most intelligent bicycle. His - according to his own statement - most challenging work is the Bible in rhyme, in which he was supported by cathedral priest Toni Faber. He lives in Vienna and London with his partner Ivo and dog Joppy.