In what probably will be our last post for 2011, we make note of yet another round of Bellairs e-books. Yes, we mentioned the American editions published by eReads earlier this summer and now we’re pleased to pass word along about the UK counterparts.
Thursday, December 29, 2011
Saturday, December 24, 2011
Small Books and Adaptation Suggestions
File under:
aaa,
face in the frost,
fandom,
house with a clock in its walls

Wednesday, December 21, 2011
Time Capsule: 1885
December 21, 1885: The sight of a comet, a brightly-lit fireball, blazing across the darkness of space can be a memorable and awe-inspiring scene. That’s just what happened 126 years ago tonight when such a chunk of rock landed on the Clabbernong Farm in Capharnaum County.
Thursday, December 15, 2011
Where's There: Sorin Hall
File under:
academia,
indiana,
wheres there
John Bellairs describes this Notre Dame dormitory as "South Bend's answer to the House of Usher" with one room being “at least 15 feet high, its exact height being a mystery because of the ever-present cloud formations, and...decorated to resemble a cross between a Victorian tenement and a Pompeian attic [the beginning: a little too much about the author; Oct. 3, 1958].
Friday, December 9, 2011
Chapter Thirteen Witch Craft
File under:
bellairsia,
question box
Hey, friends, it’s your ol’ pal, Broteus, again – refreshed after the last holiday and preparing for the next gathering. I hope your Thanksgiving was pleasant. There’s wasn’t a lot going on at the Mitchell’s this year ‘cept we decided to invite my former graduate assistant, Myron, over to spend the day. He did some sort of trick to amuse the grand kids by sticking olives on the ends of his fingers. I didn’t get it. Did check out some of the Marcy’s Thanksgiving Parade, though. Anyone here remember some of the original balloons? Felix the Cat? Harold the Barrel? The two-headed pirate? Dalcy and I aren’t really up on the new characters...sort of a grand parade of lifeless product placement. (The grand kids liked this more than the olives, so they're mostly normal.) No sign of the tree, though.
Monday, December 5, 2011
A History Of The Horror Genre
File under:
books-reading,
fandom
Two things about author Brian Keene that you learn from his website are:
- he writes novels, comic books, short fiction, and occasional journalism for money, and
- his 2003 novel, The Rising, is often credited with inspiring pop culture’s current interest in zombies.
Keene gave the keynote speech at the 2011 Anthocon in Portsmouth, New Hampshire (the first Anthocon, held last month - November 11-13) and shared some of his thoughts on the "history of the horror genre":
Tuesday, November 22, 2011
Some Noble Memories
File under:
face in the frost,
fandom
There's always a blog or two out there that dives into reminiscences of childhood and one’s reading habits from years ago. Here’s some memories from someone named Wolframharted:
Monday, November 21, 2011
Smoking Cthulhu Wedgewood
File under:
bellairsia,
question box
Hi, friends! It’s your ol’ pal Broty here, the long suffering interviewer from All About Evil. Yeah, I kinda gave up that ghost a while back after some health issues. Ol’ Doc Boothby said the diagnosis was macular degeneration...here’s a copy of the prescription pad if you’re interested.
Friday, November 18, 2011
Lewis, House Headed to Hollywood
File under:
film,
house with a clock in its walls (film)
Deadline Hollywood reports Longtime Phoenix Pictures co-president Bradley J. Fischer has formed Mythology Entertainment in partnership with screenwriter/producers Laeta Kalogridis and James Vanderbilt. "With backing from private investors, Mythology will develop and package projects internally before taking them to studios and financiers. Mythology starts the venture with...a feature rights deal to late author John Bellairs’s Lewis Barnavelt series of gothic horror novels for kids. Supernatural creator Eric Kripke has been hired to write the script and produce.
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
Where's There: Our Lady of Lourdes
File under:
academia,
saint fidgeta,
wheres there
According to the Question Box moderator, Lourdes water is used to make Sacrosticky and can be used to repair broken statues of saints or rosary beads [Saint Fidgeta and Other Parodies; 40].
Saturday, November 5, 2011
BiblioFile: La figura nell'ombra
File under:
bibliofile,
figure in the shadows,
publish it
A few months ago we discussed some of the artwork in the Italian edition of The Letter, the Witch, and the Ring as published by Happy Planet Books. We probably should have highlighted artwork from The Figure in the Shadows prior to Letter seeing how Figure takes place before the events in Letter, the Italian edition of Figure was published first, we discovered that edition’s artwork first...but it just didn’t work out that way. Deal with it. We’ll do it now.
Monday, October 31, 2011
Something Horrific In The States
File under:
fandom,
house with a clock in its walls,
michigan
We could hardly pass this map up this Halloween season.
Very Small Array created a map of the United States showing the thing people in each of the fifty U.S. states think is coming to get them. There's a helluva lot of zombies, a lot of ghosts, stay out of Rhode Island (of course), Daylight Savings Time In Indiana, and a clock in the walls of Michigan.
Nicely done.
Very Small Array created a map of the United States showing the thing people in each of the fifty U.S. states think is coming to get them. There's a helluva lot of zombies, a lot of ghosts, stay out of Rhode Island (of course), Daylight Savings Time In Indiana, and a clock in the walls of Michigan.
Nicely done.
Saturday, October 15, 2011
Where's There: Aboukir Bay
File under:
academia,
beast under the wizards bridge,
wheres there
Jonathan casts an illusion spell of being on a warship that Lord Nelson has sent into this bay [The Beast under the Wizard's Bridge; 92].
Monday, October 10, 2011
The Greater Scorns The Lesser
File under:
fandom
We all tend to talk about why we like book x and we express why we feel character y is the best. But how easy is it for us to drill down and explain why it is we don’t like a certain book or why certain characters or situations rub us the wrong way?
That’s the latest discussion in our forum, posted earlier today by Kwan Hon Luen, who provides some of his less-favored forays:
Wednesday, October 5, 2011
BiblioFile: eReads and Counting Words
File under:
bibliofile,
series - johnny dixon
Bellairsia gets read by John's American fans, sure, but we've also gotten some attention in France, the Netherlands, Italy, and even South Korea (안녕하세요 환영). One place we’re read regularly is Singapore, where contributor Kwan Hon Luen chimes in with occasional comments and reviews.
Monday, September 26, 2011
Time Capsule: 1951
File under:
history,
michigan,
mummy the will and the crypt,
time capsule
September, 1951: On a chilly Monday night in late September – sixty years ago this month – 12-year-old Johnny Dixon walked home from his Boy Scout meeting and found his beloved grandmother sitting alone in the dark and wondering if her grandson was home from school early. As any child would be in such a situation, Johnny was thrown for a loop and unprepared for the battalions of sorrows that were to come his way over the next few months.
Sunday, September 25, 2011
Interview: Deborah Nourse Lattimore
File under:
interview
Deborah Nourse Lattimore has been writing and illustrating books for young readers since 1986, including such titles as Cinderhazel, Zekmet the Stone Carver, and The Dragon’s Robe which was nominated for the Caldecott medal. To date she has almost 40 books published, as well as numerous magazine illustrations and articles, and, to top that, teaches at Otis College of Art and Design in the Marina del Rey area of Los Angeles. Deborah also happens to be an avid John Bellairs fan. We spoke with her about some of her upcoming projects as well as her appreciation for the works of John Bellairs.
Thursday, September 15, 2011
Where's There: Hailes Abbey
File under:
academia,
dark secret of weatherend,
wheres there
Emerson Eells reads in J.K. Borkman's private papers that Borkman purchased the Blood of Hailes from a crooked antique dealer near the ruins of this abbey [The Dark Secret of Weatherend; 177-8].
Sunday, September 11, 2011
Time Capsule: 2001
File under:
strickland,
time capsule,
tower at the end of the world
September, 2011: Ten years ago this month, fans of Lewis Barnavelt were introduced to Ishmael Izard and S.D. Schindler.
Saturday, September 10, 2011
2011 Living History Portrayal Walk
Marshall's Oakridge Cemetery was first used in 1839 and is one of the oldest continuously operated cemeteries in the state. For the eleventh year Oakridge will be home to the "If These Stones Could Talk...", a walking tour where actors and actresses portray significant people from Marshall's past at that person’s grave site. Small groups will be guided by hosts in a predetermined lantern-illuminated pattern through the cemetery and the once-prominent residents will rise up and share their stories.
This year’s event takes place Saturday, October 8 at 7pm come rain or shine. For more information, including associated costs, please contact the Marshall Chamber of Commerce.
This year’s event takes place Saturday, October 8 at 7pm come rain or shine. For more information, including associated costs, please contact the Marshall Chamber of Commerce.
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
O Lamentable Day
File under:
fandom
Earlier this summer something made me realize that we need a holiday. No, not a holiday like Arbor Day or Pirate Week but something Bellairs related. Why? A number of other literary people, places, and things seem to have a day set aside for fans to rally around and show their appreciation. For example (and this list is by no means inclusive):
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
BiblioFile: Luis Barnavelt I Widmo Z Muzeum Magii
File under:
bibliofile,
publish pl,
specter from the magician's museum,
strickland
We’re about due for another stirring of the pot that is the Polish editions of the Lewis Barnavelt series. Yes, we’re going about these very gradually because too much głupota tends to wear us (and our readers) down.
Monday, August 15, 2011
What's What: Seven Runic Alphabets
File under:
academia,
face in the frost,
whats what
It is said that Prospero and Roger Bacon knew “seven different runic alphabets” [The Face in the Frost; vii], which is pretty good considering the characters from runic alphabets sort of look like they could be interchangeable.
Wednesday, August 10, 2011
48th Annual Historic Home Tour
File under:
michigan
The Marshall, Michigan Historic Home Tour has been called the Granddaddy of Midwest Home Tours and is famous all over the country for its traditions and heritage. The 48th annual tour will be offering exquisite private homes and businesses for public viewing and enjoyment.
Friday, August 5, 2011
Alert: Johnny Dixon & eReads
We often wonder what John’s reaction would have been to the Internet (to Wikipedia, to YouTube, to iSchtuff, and even the CompleatBellairs) and the rise of mobile electronic devices.
For someone who wrote a celebration of olfaction by describing a book as smelling like Old Spice talcum powder (and adding that “books that smelled that way were usually fun to read” [The House with a Clock in its Walls; 19]), it might be unfathomable for a book to exist without smells, without textures, without the chance of paper cuts, and without...well...paper.
Saturday, July 30, 2011
An Heir To Our Affections
File under:
fandom,
strickland

"This isn’t exactly an unusual occurrence, and it has also taken place in children’s publishing. The series that starts with the quirky and Gothic The House With A Clock In Its Walls, by John Bellairs, was completed by author Brad Strickland after Bellairs’ death. Strickland finished two manuscripts Bellairs had started before his death: The Ghost in the Mirror and The Vengeance of the Witch-Finder. He also wrote two more books based on Bellairs’ notes, and then wrote four more novels of his own using Bellairs’ characters.
...when I hear that an author is finishing a book or series created by another author, I get very suspicious. Is this an act of generosity to readers who want more...Bellairs? Is it a plan to take advantage of a dead author’s good name? We can’t know how...Bellairs would react to Strickland’s commandeering of his series–but we do know that these authors’ estates felt it wise to approve these new books.”
Friday, July 15, 2011
What's What: Queen of Spades
File under:
academia,
house with a clock in its walls,
whats what

Sunday, July 10, 2011
The Downtown Tourist visits Marshall
File under:
michigan
Andy Fitzpatrick writes in the Battle Creek Enquirer about the popularity of Marshall:
Friday, July 8, 2011
Goreyana: The Beast under the Wizard's Bridge
File under:
beast under the wizards bridge,
gorey,
strickland
- The preliminary art for the "beast" was still on [Gorey's] drawing table when Kevin McDermott photographed Mr. Gorey's home just days after he died. It can be seen in Mr. McDermott's book, Elephant House, The Home of Edward Gorey.
- The dust jacket painting and the black and white frontis illustration were included in the 2001 Bromer Booksellers catalog.
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
Thou Seest The Twilight

Sunday, July 3, 2011
Goreyana: The Wrath of the Grinning Ghost
File under:
gorey,
wrath of the grinning ghost

While completely appropriate for this title, I have never cared for the dust jacket design for this book. I have the original artwork for the frontis illustration in my collection. The image features a fantastic map with sea monsters and flowers with faces - the flowers are reminiscent of some very early illustration work by Mr. Gorey for books by John Ciardi.
Thursday, June 30, 2011
This Isn’t Your Usual Alpheus Winterborn
File under:
fandom,
treasure of alpheus winterborn

Home of the fabled Alpheus Winterborn, the wizard lord of this mansion, Winterborn Mansion reflects its owner’s nature. Filled with creatures he has created, it is now one of the most dangerous residences in all of Alyria especially since the dread Lord Pumpkin may be found within its walls.
Though the lower floors are generally safe, the upper stories are full of evil creatures such as terrible cthons. Take a bit of time to do some exploring and you just might find some of his most deadly experiments like the Imp of the Perverse, this would be a good time to pray you brought eight of your friends and that they all have a good sense of rhythm.
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Goreyana: The Specter from the Magician's Museum
File under:
gorey,
specter from the magician's museum,
strickland

Published in 1998 by Dial Books for Young Readers, the wrap around dust jacket painting is beautifully surreal. I saw the painting in person at Gotham Book Mart, and without the distractions of the lettering and bar code, it is a truly spectacular work by Edward Gorey.
Saturday, June 25, 2011
BiblioFile: La lettera la strega e l'anello
File under:
bibliofile,
letter the witch and the ring,
publish it

Egielski’s illustrations for The Letter, the Witch, and the Ring (1976) were only his second published bookwork and are a marked departure from the widely-known pen-and-ink work of Gorey that has come to define most of Bellairs’ novels. Such was the difference that one reviewer took to call the gray-washed images “dark Americana" – something that immediately brought to our mind Grant Wood’s classic, American Gothic. Maybe it’s the way the perfectly round frames of Rose Rita’s glasses reminded us of the circular trees in his Wood’s paintings? Anyway, Regionalism as an art form may not have been on the forefront in the 1970s when Letter was published, but the illustrations work to describe a story that originates in the American heartland and takes us into a nightmarish world of witches and magic.
Monday, June 20, 2011
That Unbodied Figure Of His Thought
File under:
fandom,
figure in the shadows

Wednesday, June 15, 2011
What's What: Phi Beta Kappa Key

Tuesday, June 7, 2011
Time Capsule: 1692
File under:
series - johnny dixon,
time capsule,
wrath of the grinning ghost
June 7, 1692: Today's the day when a 7.5 Magnitude earthquake struck Port Royal, Jamaica, the unofficial capital city and one of the busiest and wealthiest ports in the West Indies. It was known both as the "storehouse and treasury of the West Indies" and "one of the wickedest places on earth". The earthquake caused most of the city to sink below sea level and about 2,000 people died as a result of the earthquake and the following tsunami.
Friday, May 27, 2011
A View Through The Spook-House Mirror
File under:
face in the frost,
fandom,
massachusetts
We're going back through the archives and sharing some thoughts about John and his work that have crossed our path over the years.
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
Bibliofile: The Face in the Frost
File under:
bibliofile,
books-publishing-de,
face in the frost,
publish jp

Sunday, May 15, 2011
What's What: Civil War Spy Codes
File under:
academia,
series - anthony monday,
treasure of alpheus winterborn,
whats what

Saturday, May 7, 2011
Goreyana: The Bell, the Book, and the Spellbinder
File under:
bell the book and the spellbinder,
gorey,
strickland

Edward Gorey created a wraparound dust jacket design that features his most colorful rear cover of the series. The lurid orange color used for the background of the tattered poster leaps out at you. Mr. Gorey also created a frontis illustration and several small interior spot illustrations. The frontis drawing may just be his most disturbing illustration from the entire series, and possibly his career. It shows a deceased, dry mouse who still has the power to move due to magic. As the mouse tries to move, it begins to pull itself apart.
Thursday, May 5, 2011
That Took Some Pains In Writing
File under:
fandom,
figure in the shadows

Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Someone Who Really Cared For Kids
File under:
fandom,
massachusetts
We're going back through the archives and sharing some thoughts about John and his work that have crossed our path over the years.
Monday, April 25, 2011
Michael and Marc Leighton
File under:
fandom

Wednesday, April 20, 2011
Whither travel you?
File under:
fandom

Friday, April 15, 2011
Who's Who: William Cullen Bryant
File under:
academia,
bell the book and the spellbinder,
whos who

Monday, April 11, 2011
Famed Be Thy Tutors
File under:
illinois
User custardpringle has some rants about the University of Chicago and in the follow-up comments announces this:
"One of my favorite ever authors, John Bellairs, got a Masters in English from U Chicago and went on to write a bunch of kids' horror novels that were incredibly dorky about religious history and occultism and the Crusades and so on. The world would be such a magnificent place if more U Chicago graduates turned out like him."
Sunday, April 10, 2011
Alert: La lettera la strega e l'anello
File under:
books-news,
letter the witch and the ring,
publish it

Monday, April 4, 2011
Beshrew The Witch!
File under:
england,
face in the frost,
fandom

Friday, April 1, 2011
Time Capsule: April 1, 1986
File under:
strickland,
time capsule
April 1, 1986: We wanted to pause our Bellairsian endeavors to note the 25th anniversary of the publication of To Stand Beneath the Sun, the debut novel of author Brad Strickland.
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
Odds and Ends from the Haunted Opera
File under:
doom of the haunted opera,
fandom,
strickland

Sunday, March 27, 2011
Driving Mister Bellairs
File under:
fandom,
massachusetts
We're going back through the archives and sharing some thoughts about John and his work that have crossed our path over the years.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)