Trenches, Shards and Blogs

A short way down the street stood the professor’s gray stucco house. The professor stood in the driveway burning notebooks and papers. A heap of them was smoldering near his feet and sending up clouds of thick, whitish smoke. The professor reached into the cardboard box he was holding and pitched another fistful of white and blue sheets into the flames.
The professor grimaced and shook a bunch of papers in Fergie’s face. “What does it look like I’m doing? I’m cleaning out the back room of my study, something that has needed doing for ages." [The Eyes of the Killer Robot, 39-40].

Review: House "A Focus On the More Basic Fears"

Book review: The House with a Clock in its Walls

An Endangered Book

Ann La Pietra, owner of the kids' shop book store in Marshall, Michigan, brings word that The Doom of the Haunted Opera may be going out of print for good.

Book Alert: Le Secret de la Salle Souterraine

Some news from France: The third book in Les aventures de Johnny Dixon will be Le secret de la salle souterraine to be published in February 2005.

We realize that The Secret of the Underground Room is actually the eighth Johnny Dixon book in the series but it has jumped up to book three in the French series. Lalex, the illustrator of the French books, notes on her website that the fourth book will probably be The Spell of the Sorcerer's Skull but no release date has been set.

Book Alert: La Tour de La Fin du Monde

The French edition of the The Tower at the End of the World, with cover art by Lalex, is to be published next June. This is book #9 in the Kévin et les magiciens series.

Holidays in Marshall

If you find yourself in Michigan at any point during the remainder of the year, John Bellairs's hometown is celebrating the holiday season with their annual Christmas Parade, Nov. 29, 2004. It's a traditional delight that's highlighted by many bands, dozens of floats, horses and lots of marching units all out to help usher in the holiday.

Compleat Bellairs offline

The Compleat Bellairs website is (temporarily?) offline. Comments from founder Jonathan Abucejo on October 21 noted that the server administrator had recently cut costs and "one of those costs was hosting my sites for free. I've sent an e-mail to the original server hosts and have been waiting for a response from them, in terms of pricing and such. Haven't received word yet."

A week later, on October 26, Abucejo again posted to the compleatbellairs discussion group that he had yet to receive a reply from the other server host. "It may be time to look at other avenues; however, that hosting service has all the most recent Interactive Board submissions. It's vital that I get that from them even if they don't choose to host the Compleat Bellairs anymore!"

The Marvelous Saint Fidgeta

It's the return of the marvelous Saint Fidgeta! Author Susanne Washburn has been working on this article for quite some time, and we're pleased to announce that the National Catholic Reporter published the piece in their October 29 print edition.

For more information:
http://www.natcath.com [article]

Daniel Handler Did Utter Forth A Voice

Bellairs fan Alex de Luca dropped us a note today to share a story of his radio run-in with author Daniel Handler – aka Lemony Snicket, the author of the popular A Series of Unfortunate Events stories:

Book Alert: 魔術師の復讐

The Japanese edition of the The Revenge of the Wizard's Ghost (loosely translated as Revenge of the Magician) will be published this coming February.

Marshall Scarecrow Festival 2004

As autumn approaches, more and more figures stuffed with straw will begin popping up in John Bellairs's hometown of Marshall. The annual Scarecrow Festival takes place during much of the month, October 16 through 31, 2004.

Review: The Ghost Finds A Body

Review: The Ghost Finds a Body

2004 Living History Portrayal Walk

Oakridge Cemetery is once again host to A Living History Portrayal on Saturday, October 16. This is a guided, walking tour of Oakridge Cemetery in Marshall, during which actors portray significant persons from the past at each of those individuals' gravesites. The actors, impersonating each individual, will provide factual information about each personage, but in the tradition of the theater - the Marshall Civic Players is one of the sponsors along with the Marshall Historical Society - the evening will be high drama!

Book Alert: L'opéra Maléfique

The French paperback version of L'opéra maléfique has been released; its cover illustration is by Jean-François Martin.

41st Annual Historic Home Tour

The 41st annual Marshall Historic Home Tour takes place September 11 and 12, 2004. The event takes place every year on the weekend after Labor Day in John Bellairs's home town. For further information or tickets contact the Marshall Historical Society. If you visit the historic community, be sure to stop and learn about the John Bellairs Walk as well.