Sufiya Ahmed

Sufiya Ahmed
Ahmed in 2020
Born
Surat, India
Years active2012–present

Sufiya Ahmed is a British author of children's literature. Her work includes the young adult (YA) novel Secrets of the Henna Girl (2012) and the middle-grade Rosie Raja and Time Travellers series. She is also known for writing a modern continuation of Enid Blyton's The Famous Five.

Early life

Born at her grandmother's house with origins in Surat, India,[1] Ahmed moved to England with her mother and grew up in Bolton, Greater Manchester and Leytonstone, East London.[2][3]

Career

Ahmed began her career working in advertising and as a researcher in the House of Commons. Her debut young adult (YA) novel Secrets of the Henna Girl was published in 2012.[4][5] Secrets of the Henna Girl won a 2013 Redbridge Children's Book Award in the Teenage category[6] and was shortlisted for a PPC Award[7] and a Sheffield Children's Book Award.[8] Ahmed also won Published Writer of the Year at the 2012 Brit Writers Awards.[3][9]

Ahmed returned to writing in 2020 with the picture book Under the Great Plum Tree, which made the USBBY Outstanding International Book List.[10] She also started a biographical series with My Story: Noor-un-Nissa Inayat Khan.[11] This was followed by My Story: Sophia Duleep Singh in 2022.[12][13]

In 2022, Bloomsbury Education acquired the rights to publish Ahmed's World War II-set Rosie Raja series.[14] Rosie Raja: Churchill's Spy was a Read for Empathy collection pick.[15][16] The third book in the series Rosie Raja: Undercover Codebreaker won Best Crime Fiction for Children at the 2025 CrimeFest Awards.[17]

Ahmed was commissioned by Hachette UK to write modern day-set books continuing Enid Blyton's The Famous Five series.[18] Also in 2023, Little Tiger (a Hardie Grant Publishing imprint) acquired the rights to publish Ahmed's middle-grade Time Travellers series.[19][20]

In 2025, Andersen Press acquired the rights to publish the middle-grade adventure novel Escape from the Child Snatchers.[21]

Bibliography

My Story

  • Noor-un-Nissa Inayat Khan (2020)
  • Sophia Duleep Singh (2022)

Rosie Raja

  • Rosie Raja: Churchill's Spy (2022)
  • Rosie Raja: Mission to Cairo (2023)
  • Rosie Raja: Undercover Codebreaker (2024)

Time Travellers

  • Adventure Calling (2024)
  • Secrets and Spies (2024)

Standalone novels

  • Secrets of the Henna Girl (2012)
  • Under Fire (2025)
  • Escape from the Child Snatchers

Picture books

  • Under the Great Plum Tree (2020)
  • The Best Eid Ever (2024)

The Famous Five Adventures

  • Timmy and the Treasure (2022)
  • Five and the Runaway Dog (2022)
  • Message in a Bottle (2023)
  • The Mysterious Noise (2023)
  • Five and the Missing Prize (2024)
  • The Library Mystery (2024)
  • The Painting Puzzle (2025)
  • Trouble at the Farm (2025)

Reading practice

  • Ruby Ali's Mission Break Up (2021)
  • Here to Stay (2022)
  • Searching for Jamila (2022)
  • Brave Spies (2022)
  • Aran the Home Visit Pharmacist (2022)
  • Zara the Youth Worker (2022)
  • Follow the Moon (2022)
  • The Golden Age of Islam (2023)
  • The Wedding Shoes (2023)
  • Inspiring Feminists (2023)
  • Zakir the Storyteller (2024)
  • The Lost Medal (2024)
  • The Pasta Disaster (2024)
  • The Hyde Park Detectives (2024)

Short stories

  • in Ladybird Tales of Super Heroes (2019)
  • in Bedtime Stories: Amazing Asian Tales from the Past (2022)
  • in War Girls (2024)

Essays

  • in It's Not About the Burqa: Muslim Women on Faith, Feminism, Sexuality and Race (2020), edited by Mariam Khan
  • "Tears and Tantrums" in A Match Made in Heaven: British Muslim Women Write about Love and Desire (2020), edited by Claire Chambers

Other

  • History: A Children's Encyclopedia (2022)
  • Our World in Pictures: The History Book (2023)

References

  1. ^ Thakur, Charu (14 July 2022). "Sufiya Ahmed: The British-Indian author giving South Asians a voice through her books". The Global Indian. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
  2. ^ Thiagarajan, Kamala (14 September 2022). "Enid Blyton: The most comforting children's books ever". BBC News. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
  3. ^ a b Curtis, Joe (6 December 2012). "Leytonstone author wins award for debut novel, Secrets of the Henna Girl". Guardian Series. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
  4. ^ "Author tells the story of her novel". The Northern Echo. 21 January 2013. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
  5. ^ Cole, David (2013). "Secrets of the Henna Girl: an Interview with Sufiya Ahmed". Pen Heaven. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
  6. ^ Binns, Daniel (5 July 2013). "Young bookworms enjoy 10th Redbridge's Children's Book Awards at Sir James Hawkey Hall in Woodford Green". Guardian Series. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
  7. ^ Williams, Charlotte (31 January 2013). "PPC unveils 2012 awards shortlists". The Bookseller. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
  8. ^ Wilson, Jennie (15 November 2013). "Sufiya Ahmed talks about the forthcoming Book Award ceremony". Sheffield Chilsren's Book Award. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
  9. ^ Robertson, Neil (8 December 2013). "Award-winning author Sufiya Ahmed visits Sharples School". The Bolton News. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
  10. ^ "Juvenile Literature". Auburn University Libraries. Retrieved 1 November 2025.
  11. ^ "11 books about inspiring and amazing women". Cosmopolitan Middle East. 9 March 2021. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
  12. ^ "Sophia Duleep Singh: Princess and suffragette inspires children's book". BBC News. 8 September 2022. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
  13. ^ "Interview: Sufiya Ahmed on the incredible inspirational stories of British Indian Women". Imagining History. 15 September 2022. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
  14. ^ Tivnan, Tom (5 April 2022). "Take two: Bloomsbury Education buys a brace of historical tales". The Bookseller. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
  15. ^ Tree, Louise. "Rosie Raja: Churchill's Spy". Historical Novel Society. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
  16. ^ Brown, Lauren (8 February 2023). "Books by Ainsworth, Chan and Coehlo among Read for Empathy collection 2023". The Bookseller. Retrieved 2 October 2024.
  17. ^ Mitchell, Erin (17 May 2025). "Winners of the Final 2025 CrimeFest Awards Announced". Crimespree. Retrieved 1 November 2025.
  18. ^ Sharma, Nikita (4 March 2023). "Sufiya Ahmed reimagines Enid Blyton's Famous Five for the ages". Live Mint. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
  19. ^ Brown, Lauren (7 March 2023). "Little Tiger moves on Ahmed's new middle grade series". The Bookseller. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
  20. ^ Tyson, Sarah (16 February 2024). "Kid's Book Review: Time Travellers". Books Up North. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
  21. ^ Brown, Lauren (15 October 2025). "Andersen Press snatches Sufiya Ahmed's 'thrilling' middle-grade adventure". The Bookseller. Retrieved 1 November 2025.
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