Colfer, Eoin, << KOHL fuhr, OH ehn >> (1965-…), is an Irish author. He became known for his series of popular fantasy books for young adults featuring a young criminal mastermind named Artemis Fowl. The series is filled with fast-paced action and humor. Characters include fairies, pixies, dwarfs, and trolls. The stories also include high-tech weapons and gadgets.
The “Artemis Fowl” series (2001-2012) began with the book Artemis Fowl (2001). In this first novel, Artemis is 12 years old. He is a teenager in the later books. One major character in the series is a leprechaun policewoman named Holly Short, who begins as Artemis’s foe but later joins him in fighting evil forces. Another series character is Artemis’s bodyguard, Butler. In 2019, Colfer began a related series about Artemis’s younger twin brothers with The Fowl Twins. A motion picture based on the original Artemis Fowl story, also called Artemis Fowl, was released in 2020.
Colfer began his career as a children’s author with two novels about an Irish boy named Benny—Benny and Omar (1998) and Benny and Babe (1999). Colfer then wrote three books for younger readers—Going Potty (1999), Ed’s Funny Feet (2000), and Ed’s Bed (2001). Colfer wrote The Wish List (2000), a dark fantasy about an Irish girl named Meg Finn. The Supernaturalist (2004) is a science-fiction story about a boy who escapes from an orphanage where children are used for food and drug testing. Half-Moon Investigations (2006) is a mystery story about a boy detective named Fletcher Moon. Airman (2008), set in the 1890’s, is an adventure story about a flying machine.
Colfer also created the “Eoin Colfer’s Legend of…” series, which includes The Legend of Spud Murphy (2004), Captain Crow’s Teeth (2006), and The Worst Boy in the World (2007). He wrote the picture book Imaginary Fred (2015, illustrated by Oliver Jeffers), about a boy with an imaginary friend. Another picture book, The Dog Who Lost His Bark (2019, illustrated by P. J. Lynch), is about a boy who longs for a dog and a dog who wants a boy of his own. Colfer also wrote the young adult novel Iron Man: The Gauntlet (2016), which takes place in Ireland and is based on the American comic book superhero called Iron Man.
Colfer was born on May 14, 1965, in Wexford, Ireland. He was an elementary school teacher from 1987 until 2001, when the success of his first “Artemis Fowl” novel allowed him to become a full-time writer. Colfer wrote his first adult novel, And Another Thing… (2009), as the conclusion to the science-fiction series The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by the British writer Douglas Adams. Colfer also wrote Plugged (2011), a comic crime novel for adults; a sequel called Screwed (2013); and a fantasy novel for adults called Highfire (2020).
