Chris Van Allsburg’s illustrations in The Mysteries of Harris Burdick have inspired readers for more than twenty five years. Now they are interpreted afresh in fourteen vivid stories by award winning US authors including Louis Sachar, Jon Scieszka and Chris Van Allsburg himself. Each uses a different illustration as a starting point and between them they create an extraordinary whole that offers new interpretations of the pictures while still leaving room to wonder.
This inspired collection of short stories is based on the original illustrations of Chris Van Allsburg in his esteemed and mysterious The Mysteries of Harris Burdick, and features many remarkable, best-selling authors in the worlds of both adult and children's literature: Sherman Alexie, M.T. Anderson, Kate DiCamillo, Cory Doctorow, Jules Feiffer, Stephen King, Tabitha King, Lois Lowry, Gregory Maguire, Walter Dean Myers, Linda Sue Park, Louis Sachar, Jon Scieszka, Lemony Snicket, and Chris Van Allsburg himself.
More than ever, the illustrations send off their eerie call for text and continue to compel and pick at the reader's brain for a backstory - a threaded tale behind the image. In this book, we've collected some of the best storytellers to spin them. One Pulitzer Prize, five Newbery Medals, three Newbery Honors, two Caldecott Medals, one Caldecott Honor, three National Book Awards, seven National Book Award nominations, and five Coretta Scott King Awards, to mention but a few of the prizes this team of authors has won. A new spin on a much-loved children's book.
Simply breath taking ... a collection that does justice to the seductive power of the illustrations themselves Books for Keeps
(Book of the Week) Fourteen curious, teasing, sometimes humorous and sometimes dark stories ... create an extraordinary whole that offers new interpretations of the pictures while still leaving room to wonder. -- Julia Eccleshare Guardian
Unpredictable, imaginative and thought-provoking, this is a diverse and suitably mysterious collection Booktrust
Wildly imaginative...a delight Bookbag
Useful as a tool for cross curricular working between Art departments, English departments and the library too. The School Librarian
Author
About Chris Van Allsburg
Chris van Allsburg lives in Providence, Rhode Island and lectures at the Rhode Island School of Design. He is a sculptor and artist, who first won the Caldecott Medal for Jumanji and then won it again for Polar Express.