Big Mouth Strikes Again

Some Bellairsian inspired ephemera found around web:

Women in Bellairs' Fiction

What's Kate reading? Bellairs, again, as this prolific reader and blogger (who has reviewed more than a few Bellairs titles) has a new commentary on the female characters in John’s novels.

Light and Shade, Alas! Alas!

 

Vincent Desjardins is an illustrator and a fan of children's book illustrations who noted he was recently inspired by The Dark Secret of Weatherend

Goreyana: Weatherend & Spell

Notes from Goreyana about The Dark Secret of Weatherend and The Spell of the Sorcerer's Skull:

• The Dark Secret of Weatherend is the second Anthony Monday/Miss Eells adventure. For this title, Mr. Gorey created a beautiful painting for the dust wrapper. Some of the dust jacket designs from this series have a disjointed front and back to them, but this one reads as a single image, especially since the figures are in different clothing on the front and back. The dust jacket painting was included in Bromer Bookseller's 2001 catalog of Gorey items. The hand-lettered type for the cover/spine was included as a separate piece of art. I am not aware of the frontis drawing being available from Bromer or Gotham Book Mart.
• The Spell of the Sorcerer's Skull...I tried to obtain the cover art from this title when Mr. Gorey sold his Bellairs art holdings in 1994, but it was not found in the archives. The frontis drawing failed to make an appearance as well. I really like this dust jacket design, and I would have loved to been able to obtain this piece of art had it been available.

Top 10 Gorey Titles

In preparation for what would have been Edward Gorey’s 85th birthday later this month, we’re counting down what are, in our meager opinion, the top ten strangest sounding Gorey book titles. Who else could come up with something as arcane as The Eclectic Abecedarium?

Time Capsule: February 8, 1910

February 8, 1910: 100 years ago today – February 8, 1910 – William D. Boyce incorporated the Boy Scouts of America. Popular legend says that Boyce first learned of the Scouting movement organized by Lord Robert Baden-Powell from an Unknown Scout that gave him directions on a foggy London street in late 1909.