More than 25 years ago The Mysteries of Harris Burdick were published by Chris Van Allsburg. Odd, incredible illustrations with strange captions that were supposed to have stories delivered by the mysterious Harris Burdick, who never delivered as promised. Instead, the illustrations were published with only their odd captions, leaving millions of readers pondering over what the stories could have been.
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| Image courtesy of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt |
As is fitting this odd and mysterious book arrived at my office yesterday without warning. It was dropped by a delivery man quite early in the morning, which surprised me. As I opened the package, my eyes widened with delight as I realized what I held in my hands. My original copy of the Mysteries of Harris Burdick had burned up in a fire in 1995, when my studio was destroyed, but here, magically, was it's successor delivered to my hands once again, full of wonder, excitement, and curiosities.
I opened the book and began to read the introduction, then I paged through the tome reacquainting myself with the odd, yet wonderful, illustrations who have become friends through the years, inspiring me to learn to illustration myself. (You can see a few of my illustrations at www.cynarts.com). Then I sat down in my big chair as the first rain of the season hit my studio, and began to read....
How delightful!
Many of the children (of all ages) who were captivated by the odd illustrations, sat down during the intervening years and penned their own stories to go with the tales. Some were mundane and others were fantastical, while others fell squarely in between. In The Chronicles of Harris Burdick, we are given a gift of 14 stories that may or may not have been penned by the mysterious Harris Burdick. According to the introduction by Lemony Snicket, he was given the run around when he tried to learn the answer from the listed authors. The stories may have been dropped off by Harris, inspired by him, orchestrated by him, or not involving him at all. Whatever these esteemed authors know, is being keep close to the vest.
If you are lucky enough to locate one of these amazing volumes, buy it immediately! Curl up in front of a fireplace, or in front of a large window in a comfortable chair, and enter a world of tales that were left untold for more than a quarter of a century! Each person will assuredly have a favorite tale, which may or may not match their favorite illustration.
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| Image courtesy of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt |
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