Chris Van Allsburg (born June 18, 1949 in Grand Rapids, Michigan) is an American author and illustrator of children's books. He won the Caldecott Medal for Jumanji (1982) and The Polar Express (1985), both of which he wrote and illustrated, and both of which were later adapted into successful motion pictures. He received the Caldecott Honor Medal in 1980 for The Garden of Abdul Gasazi. June 18 is the 169th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (170th in leap years), with 196 days remaining. ... 1949 (MCMXLIX) was a common year starting on Saturday (the link is to a full 1949 calendar). ... Nickname: Location of Grand Rapids within Kent County, Michigan Coordinates: Country United States State Michigan County Kent Founded 1826 Incorporation (city) 1850 Government  - Mayor George Heartwell Area  - City  45. ... Cosette Dwyer is an amazing author. ... An illustrator is a graphic artist who specializes in enhancing written text by providing a visual representation that corresponds to the content of the associated text. ... Jane Frank: illustration from Thomas Yoseloffs The Further Adventures of Till Eulenspiegel (1957). ... The Caldecott Medal was designed by Rene Paul Chambellan in 1937. ... mikaela magee is sooo fricken pist mikaela is . ... Year 1982 (MCMLXXXII) was a common year starting on Friday (link displays the 1982 Gregorian calendar). ... The Polar Express is a 1985 childrens book (ISBN 0-86264-143-8) written and illustrated by Chris Van Allsburg, a former professor at the Rhode Island School of Design. ... 1985 (MCMLXXXV) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... For other uses see film (disambiguation) Film refers to the celluliod media on which movies are printed Film — also called movies, the cinema, the silver screen, moving pictures, photoplays, picture shows, flicks, or motion pictures, — is a field that encompasses motion pictures as an art form or as... Year 1980 (MCMLXXX) was a leap year starting on Tuesday (link displays the 1980 Gregorian calendar). ... The Garden of Abdul Gasazi is a best-selling childrens book written in 1979 by world-renowned author Chris Van Allsburg. ...

He attended art school at the University of Michigan, and received his MFA from Rhode Island School of Design. Marie Bashkirtseff, In the Studio, 1881, Dnipropetrovsk State Art Museum, Dnipropetrovsk. ... The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor (UM, U of M or U-M) is a coeducational public research university in the state of Michigan. ... In the United States, a Master of Fine Arts (MFA) is a terminal graduate degree in an area of visual, plastic, literary or performing arts typically requiring two to three years of study beyond the bachelor level. ... The Rhode Island School of Design (RISD, pronounced /RIZ-dee/) is one of the premier fine arts institutions in the United States. ...

His books often depict fantastic, uncontrolled events and utilize sometimes brutal irony. Van Allsburg breaks out of the comfortable world of children's literature to explore the darker side of human nature. For example, his book The Sweetest Fig is about a selfish man who is suddenly given the opportunity to make his wildest dreams come true. His greed is eventually his downfall. This is not an unusual moral for a story in children's books, but Van Allsburg's chilling characterization of the man brings a frightening tone to the narrative. The Wretched Stone, in which a ship's crew is mesmerized and corrupted by the titular rock, is an allegorical tale about the negative impact of television^{[citation needed]}. The Sweetest Fig is a childrens fantasy novel written in 1993 by Chris Van Allsburg. ... The Wretched Stone is a book by Chris Van Allsburg A crew of sailors find a stone shaped like a television. ...

Other literary themes include dreams, the environment, and items with lives of their own (like the board games in Jumanji and Zathura). mikaela magee is sooo fricken pist mikaela is . ... Zathura is an illustrated book by Chris Van Allsburg as well as a film based on the book. ...

Every book features Fritz, a bull terrier that is based on a real-life dog owned by Chris Van Allsburg's brother-in-law. He appears in every book and even on his website, sometimes as a real dog, or a toy, or other things as a tribute to the dog's death. Fritz is the name of the bull terrier who appears in all of Chris Van Allsburgs books. ...

Chris Van Allsburg lives in Providence, Rhode Island with Lisa Van Allsburg, his wife of 30 years. They have 2 daughters, Sophia and Anna.

Bibliography

• Bad Day at Riverbend
• Ben's Dream
• The Garden of Abdul Gasazi
• Jumanji
• Just a Dream
• The Mysteries of Harris Burdick
• The Polar Express
• Probuditi!
• The Stranger
• Swan Lake (Illustrator)
• The Sweetest Fig
• Two Bad Ants
• The Wreck of the Zephyr
• The Wretched Stone
• The Widow's Broom
• The Z Was Zapped
• Zathura

The Mysteries of Harris Burdick, a collection of images on one side, and one sentence on the other (meant to be 'recovered pages' of longer books) continues the themes of darker undertones and was the inspiration for a short story by author Stephen King, in his collection Nightmares and Dreamscapes (as his author's note expands upon). The Garden of Abdul Gasazi is a best-selling childrens book written in 1979 by world-renowned author Chris Van Allsburg. ... mikaela magee is sooo fricken pist mikaela is . ... The Mysteries of Harris Burdick is a picture book by Chris Van Allsburg consisting of a series of unrelated, highly detailed images in the authors distinctive style, most showing surreal, rather dark events. ... The Polar Express is a 1985 childrens book (ISBN 0-86264-143-8) written and illustrated by Chris Van Allsburg, a former professor at the Rhode Island School of Design. ... The Stranger is a childrens novel written in 1986 by Chris Van Allsburg. ... The Sweetest Fig is a childrens fantasy novel written in 1993 by Chris Van Allsburg. ... The Wreck of the Zephyr is a childrens book written and illustrated by Chris Van Allsburg, first published by Houghton Mifflin in March 1983. ... The Wretched Stone is a book by Chris Van Allsburg A crew of sailors find a stone shaped like a television. ... The Widows Broom is a book by Chris Van Allsburg. ... The Z Was Zapped (ISBN 0395446120) is a book by Chris Van Allsburg originally published in 1987 by Houghton Mifflin. ... Zathura is an illustrated book by Chris Van Allsburg as well as a film based on the book. ... The Mysteries of Harris Burdick is a picture book by Chris Van Allsburg consisting of a series of unrelated, highly detailed images in the authors distinctive style, most showing surreal, rather dark events. ... Stephen Edwin King (born September 21, 1947) is an American author of over 200 stories including over 50 bestselling horror novels. ... Nightmares & Dreamscapes (1993) is a short story collection by Stephen King. ...

Mr. Van Allsburg's art has also been featured on one of the many editions of C. S. Lewis' series The Chronicles of Narnia, on each of the various covers of the books, as well as being the illustrator of a series of children's books by Mark Helprin. Clive Staples Lewis (29 November 1898 – 22 November 1963), commonly referred to as C. S. Lewis, was an Irish author and scholar. ... The Narnia books “Narnia” redirects here. ... Mark Helprin (born on June 28, 1947) is an award-winning American novelist and journalist, best known for his novel Winter’s Tale and his writing for The New Yorker. ...

External links

• Van Allsburg's web site
• Van Allsburg on his film adaptation of the Christmas story The Polar Express while maintaining a Jewish home