Anthony Horowitz was miserable (痛苦的) as a child.He was, as he puts it, "not very bright"
and couldn't win the attention of his very wealthy parents, who preferred his "clever" older brother
.At age 8, Horowitz was sent away to an abusive (虐待的) boarding school in his native England,
even though he screamed and pleaded (恳求) with his parents year after year not to send him."The
thought was, 'It'll be good for him' ," Horowitz recalls (回忆)．
     It was not.Horowitz did badly in his studies, had few friends and was bullied (欺负) for five
years."My teachers couldn't have had a lower opinion of me," he said."I wasn't even smart enough
to rebel (反抗)．One thing I remember from the very earliest age was this desire to write.When
I was 10 years old, I remember asking my parents to get me a typewriter for my birthday because
I wanted to be a writer."
     Now, at 55, Horowitz is one of the world's most successful children's book authors.His Alex
Rider series has sold more than 5 million copies, and the eighth book featuring the young spy,
Crocodile Tears, came out this month.
     The Alex Rider books tell the adventures of 14yearold Alex Rider, an agent for the British
intelligence agency MI6.
     Horowitz said he doesn't try to write for kids; it just comes out that way."I have a feeling it's
to do with purity and simplicity.I give as little information as is necessary to describe the room,
the character in the room, and get on with the action," he said.
     That style has also made Horowitz a successful writer of television shows for adults in Britain
because, he says, writing books for kids is a lot like writing television for grownups.In both cases,
it's all about entertaining people with a good story.
     Now, Horowitz couldn't be happier with his life.He sums up his success: "…you can be anything
you want to be if you just believe in yourself.I do believe it completely."