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Find out moreJohn Burningham (1936-2019) studied illustration and graphic design at the Central School of Art, graduating with distinction in 1959. Many illustration commissions followed including iconic posters for London Transport, before the publication of Borka: the Adventures of a Goose with No Feathers, John’s first book for children (Cape, 1963) which won the prestigious Kate Greenaway Medal for illustration and heralded the beginning of an extraordinary career. John Burningham has since written and illustrated over thirty picture books, that have been translated and distributed all over the world. These feature his classic and much loved children’s books including Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, by Ian Fleming (Jonathan Cape, 1964); Mr Gumpy’s Outing (Jonathan Cape, 1970) also awarded the Kate Greenaway Medal; Around the World in Eighty Days by Jules Verne (Jonathan Cape, 1972); The Shopping Basket (Random House, 1980); The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame (Penguin/Puffin, 1983); Granpa (Jonathan Cape, 1984) later made into an animated film and Oi! Get off our Train (Jonathan Cape, 1989) and various books for adults England (Jonathan Cape, 1992); France (Jonathan Cape, 1998); The Time of Your Life (Bloomsbury Publishing, 2002) and When We Were Young (Bloomsbury Publishing, 2004).
Tug of War was republished in 2012, and a special edition of Borka, celebrating 50 years in print, was published in June 2013. Picnic appeared in the autumn of 2013 and The Way to the Zoo was published in the UK in 2014. Chitty Chitty Bang Bang is celebrating its 50th year in print with a limited edition in hardback to be published in 2015.
John was married to the illustrator, Helen Oxenbury.
John Burningham won his record breaking second Kate Greenaway medal for Mr Gumpy’s Outing in 1970, which was the first we saw of the character that John claimed was a ‘prophetic caricature’ because he grew to look more like him throughout his life! So, it seems entirely appropriate that the very last book written by John features his alter ego. We last saw him in the equally popular Mr Gumpy’s Motor Car in 1973 so where has he been since? Travelling in Africa it seems, where he rescues a baby rhino who has lost his parents, killed by poachers who had stolen their horns. Kind Mr Gumpy goes in search of milk from friendly Bedouin tribesmen, decides to call his rhino Charlie and takes him on the ship home with him. He struggles to find enough food for the rapidly growing Charlie and local schoolchildren suggest he could work for the council keeping the grass down on the roadside verges. His specially made high-vis jacket and rhino at work sign are a real hit with Charlie! He repays this kindness by rescuing the school outing; taking the children on his back to the beach and then out to sea to catch the boat they had just missed- a thrilling ride for everyone! With the classic mix of soft sepia line drawings and beautifully textured full colour images this is Burningham at his best, vividly capturing landscapes and the tiny, exquisitely drawn details that bring every character to life. A real celebration of kindness and community that offers a gentle introduction for small children to discussion about conservation and endangered species. A real classic that will be as timeless, popular and hopefully award -winning, as its predecessors.
More inspired lunacy to delight young readers in this question game format revisited and illustrated in classic Burningham style.
In the house there lives a family: a mum, a dad, a girl and a boy. But they are not alone; a secret mouse family is living there too, who only come out when everyone else is asleep. One day they are spotted and the mouse catcher is called ... Will they escape in time?
There’s a perfect simplicity to this book, the work of a picture book genius. Miles is a difficult dog, won’t come when called, doesn’t like walks or other dogs, barks too much. The only thing he does like, in fact, is going out in the car. Fortunately, the family’s neighbour realises that what Miles needs is a car of his own, and offers to make him one. John Burningham’s illustrations, simultaneously comic and serious, match his deadpan text beautifully; Miles and his young owner Norman are wonderfully realised characters; the colours glow: quite simply wonderful. ~ Andrea Reece
October 2016 Book of the Month There’s a perfect simplicity to this book, the work of a picture book genius. Miles is a difficult dog, won’t come when called, doesn’t like walks or other dogs, barks too much. The only thing he does like, in fact, is going out in the car. Fortunately, the family’s neighbour realises that what Miles needs is a car of his own, and offers to make him one. John Burningham’s illustrations, simultaneously comic and serious, match his deadpan text beautifully; Miles and his young owner Norman are wonderfully realised characters; the colours glow: quite simply wonderful. ~ Andrea Reece
Award-winning John Burningham tells a touching story of a little girl and the special friends she makes in the night time. When Sylvie finds a door in her bedroom she discovers a secret passage to her very own zoo full of the most wonderful animals. Every night Sylvie finds a new animal to take back to her room. The easiest to manage are small and cuddly, others, like the penguins who splash a lot in the bath, are too messy. The baby elephant is too big to get along the passage and the dog is too smelly to stay in Sylvie’s room. Every day when she goes to school, Sylvie makes sure the door is firmly shut. Until one day she forgets…
One of our Books of the Year 2014 - April 2014 Book of the Month Award-winning John Burningham tells a touching story of a little girl and the special friends she makes in the night time. When Sylvie finds a door in her bedroom she discovers a secret passage to her very own zoo full of the most wonderful animals. Every night Sylvie finds a new animal to take back to her room. The easiest to manage are small and cuddly, others, like the penguins who splash a lot in the bath, are too messy. The baby elephant is too big to get along the passage and the dog is too smelly to stay in Sylvie’s room. Every day when she goes to school, Sylvie makes sure the door is firmly shut. Until one day she forgets…
Would you rather have breakfast with bears, lunch with a lion or dinner with ducks? Would you like to fly with the pelicans or swim with the fish? Would it be worse if an elephant made a terrible smell or you fell over in a field of cows? Ask - and answer - these questions and many more in this funny, imaginative game of a book from John Burningham.
In the house there lives a family: a mum, a dad, a girl and a boy. But they are not alone; a secret mouse family is living there too, who only come out when everyone else is asleep. One day they are spotted and the mouse catcher is called ... Will they escape in time? A story of home and hope from picture-book genius, John Burningham.
Join Marie Elaine on a thrilling rooftop journey that takes her to a most unusual party! One night Marie Elaine finds her cat Malcolm dressed to go to a party. On condition she keep his secret, Malcolm agrees to let her come with him, and they set off through the streets - a dangerous journey, for Marie Elaine is now as small as her cat! At the party there are cats and more cats, and they are all very excited ... the Queen of the Cats is on her way! It is a night that Marie Elaine will never forget - and she won't forget to keep the secret either!
When it comes to delivering the last present in his sack, no journey is too far for Father Christmas! A charming seasonal story from an award-winning artist. It's Christmas Eve and there is one present left in Father Christmas's sack. It's for a small boy called Harvey Slumfenburger, who lives far, far away on top of the Roly Poly Mountain. But no journey is too far for Father Christmas!
Ageing is that part of the future that we try to keep in the future. And 'nobody likes to get old...that doesn't mean to say you have to be an old fart sitting in the pub talking about what happened in the 1960s' Mick Jagger. John Burningham has collected fine examples of the wisdom and wit that comes with age from those in the know, woven with a rich selection of quotes and fifty poignant drawings by Burningham himself.
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