Interview: Richard Denney

Over the years a number of fans have said that John Bellairs motivated them to write. You know – books. This month we introduce one such writer, Richard Denney, who has authored stories for teens and children such as Violet Fury and The Immortalists. Denney lives out in the west Texas town of El Paso and shares his thoughts about John with us – and he’s such a fan he says he’s getting a tattoo in memory of him this summer. During his down time from writing, blogging, and YouTubing, Richard has been known to catch The Vampire Diaries on the telly, too.

What’s What: White Rock Girl

Dr. Coote crouches on the end of his bed similar to the White Rock Girl to watch the struggle between his friend, Professor Childermass, and a sinister, parasitic creature [The Drum, the Doll, and the Zombie; 121-2].

Dickens, Schuler & Bellairs III

We’re celebrating the 200th anniversary of celebrated author Charles Dickens’ birth this year. Born February 7, 1812 in Landport, Portsmouth, England, Dickens created a plethora of memorable characters with whimsical names across a dozen major novels and numerous short stories.

Memoriam: Ray Bradbury

Author Ray Bradbury has died at the age of 91. Author of Fahrenheit 451 (1953), The Martian Chronicles (1950), and Something Wicked This Way Comes (1962), Bradbury was one of the most celebrated among 20th century American writers of speculative fiction and was the recipient of the 2000 National Book Foundation Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters, the 2004 National Medal of Arts, and the 2007 Pulitzer Prize Special Citation.  A native of Waukegan, Illinois, Bradbury lived in California where he died June 5.

BiblioFile: eReads Artwork

Johnny Dixon and Edward Gorey will always be connected in that of John Bellairs’ three series of young-adult adventures only one had the same artist for the entire run of American hardcover editions. The Barnavelt series has had five different illustrators and there were two for the Monday series, but Gorey created the wraparound dust-jacket art for all twelve Johnny Dixon books published between 1983 and 1999. Because of that there is a certain consistency to their look when the novels are displayed end-to-end. (Some people do that, we’re told.)