Q & A WITH Chris Van Allsburg
Q: Probuditi. Zathura. Jumanji. Where do you come up with your titles?
A: Jumanji and Zathura I made up. In the case of Jumanji, I wanted a word that was exotic, that suggested a strange and remote place. It is the name of a city hidden deep within a jungle, and possibly the “Ju” first syllable came to me as a way of underlining its jungle environment. I always thought of it as African, though it sounds a little more like an Indian name. For the space adventure game I felt the planet name should have the same number of syllables as Jumanji, with the same second-syllable emphasis. Probuditi I did not make up. I imagined the magician and hypnotist Lomax as a European who would take his hypnotism subjects out of their trance by shouting “AWAKEN!” in his native tongue. Lomax sounded like a kind of middle European name, so I looked at a variety of translations of awaken in the languages of that part of the world and found that awaken is probuditi in Serbo-Croatian.
Q: Many of your books deal with sibling rivalry in a very realistic way. Is this a topic close to your heart?
A: I wrote books for some years before becoming a father. After my children were born, people asked if I thought this would change the kind of stories I wrote. I answered no because I couldn’t picture myself looking at the world through my children’s eyes or creating stories specifically to hold their interest. That wasn’t how I had worked in the past. I didn’t expect that I would experience, vicariously, events from my daughters’ lives to create stories. However, I found, as they aged, the relationship between the children inherently dramatic, what with its conflicts and power struggles played out within a fundamentally loving relationship.
Q: Probuditi!, unlike most of your other books, is not a fantasy story. Why the change?
A: It was not a result of calculation or decision. I was thinking about a story that would include a stage magician who performed amazing tricks and that I would, as an illustrator, have the opportunity to create pictures of the illusions as they were performed. This idea led to creation of a young character who admired the magician. With these elements in place, I was considering a kind of peculiar and contemporary Sorcerer’s Apprentice. But at some point I contemplated the possibility that the magician was also a hypnotist. This reminded me of the fascination I had with hypnotism when I was a child, and I decided that the young boy in the story would not end up misusing my elaborate stage magic or any truly supernatural magic. He would merely take the inspiration of Lomax’s hypnotism and try to use it at home.
Q: Have you ever been hypnotized?
A: No, and I don’t want to be.
Q: The art in the book is so tactile. Can you describe the technique you used for these illustrations?
A: I imagined the story taking place about sixty years ago, when magicians would still do shows in theaters (the last gasp of vaudeville). That distance in time suggested an approach that would give both the book and the setting within a little “patina.” Additionally, the events of the story transpire on a very hot day, so I chose a very warm brown (burnt sienna) as the basic color. This is much warmer than the conventional “sepia” deployed for nostalgic image making. The drawings are very roughly laid out in pastel, and then the tone and details are refined with the use of pencils. It is the texture of the pencil on top of the pastel that contributes to the “tactile” nature of the finished work.
Q: Are the setting and time period in Probuditi! based on your childhood in Grand Rapids?
A: Well, the period is about twenty years older. It would have been 1961 when I was Calvin’s age. And the story takes place in the early forties. As for the setting, Grand Rapids I am sure played a role in my imagination. Though the town Calvin lives in is much smaller, the geography of Grand Rapids was definitely on my mind, because going “downtown” from my almost suburban neighborhood was a long walk, and there were some very big hills to climb coming back. I only walked it a couple of times, but it’s a walk no twelve-year-old would want to make on a hot day pulling his sister in a wagon.
Q: Three of your books have been made into blockbuster movies—do you have a favorite screen adaptation?
A: No. Each of the films has segments that succeed not only cinematically but also manage to convey what I was attempting to do on the pages of the book. It’s a great pleasure to behold those moments, but because I have such a restless imagination I can’t help but envision what I think a film should be and am consequently too judgmental to fairly evaluate the films. However, I feel I have been lucky to have had, in each instance, the highest standards of filmmaking put to use, and the serious commitment of very talented individuals!
Q: Your Web site (www.chrisvanallsburg.com) is fantastic! Do you spend a lot of time on the Internet?
A: Not much. I do a little research (for example, to find out how you say “awaken” in Serbo-Croatian).
Q: What are you working on now?
A: Well, after I finish the final pictures for Probuditi! I have a few book ideas I will explore, and I’ll give a little thought to some film projects based on other books. I have some ideas for sculpture too. I’ve been thinking about a sculpture of a small house almost entirely covered by snow drifts, executed in marble. And also a stampede of chairs, about four inches high, running across rugged terrain, cast in bronze. A series of pencils with multiple points sprouting out at the end, grotesque and bulbous erasers, twisted and knotted shafts, conjoined twins, etc., in wood and titled The Effects of Low-Level Radiation on Pencils. I have lots of ideas. The problem for me has always been which one to do.
Provided by Houghton Mifflin
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Reviews
Probuditi!
Chris Van Allsburg
Van Allsburg takes us back to the days when magic shows were common in theaters, offering a slyly humorous tale of sibling rivalry and revenge. Thrilled with his birthday gift of tickets to see magician and hypnotist Lomax the Magnificent, Calvin takes his friend Rodney as his guest, leaving his poor, constantly teased sister, Trudy, behind. After enjoying the show, the boys are left to watch Trudy. They decide to make a contraption like that used by Lomax to try to hypnotize her. To their shocked surprise, when they tell her she is a dog, she seems to become one. The problem then is how to wake her out of it before mother returns. The ending is a real surprise, with Trudy the heroine. The theatrically designed double-page scenes depict the town streets and the home of a middle-class family with just enough detail to establish the setting. Van Allsburg uses pencil details over roughly-laid-out pastel, no added color, as in his other books like Jumanji, but here they are in textured burnt sienna, a color that reinforces their historical appearance. His focus is on the kids and their behavior; the characters are naturalistic and sculpturesque. Trudy, in particular, plays her dog role with convincing conviction. Under the paper jacket, the cover is imprinted with the spiral from the hypnotizing machine, its gold adding to the elegance of the dark brown boards. The title, the “magic word,” is Serbo-Croatian for “awaken.” 2006, Houghton Mifflin Company, $18.95. Ages 4 to 10. Reviewers: Ken Marantz and Sylvia Marantz (Children's Literature).
It is Calvin’s birthday and his mother has given him tickets to see Lomax the Magnificent. Ignoring her hint about including Trudy, his little sister, Calvin immediately asks his friend Rodney to accompany him. They are intrigued by Lomax’s ability to hypnotize a woman from the audience, who obeys his command to act like a chicken. Upon arriving home, Calvin is left in charge of Trudy while his mother leaves for a while. Calvin and Rodney rig up a spiral disc, hypnotize Trudy, and tell her she is a dog. Trudy obligingly becomes a dog. Barking and yapping, she chases a squirrel up a tree. Then she laps water from a bowl on the floor with obvious gusto. Realizing that his mom will be home soon, Calvin decides to break the spell. But, alas, neither he nor Rodney can recall the magic word (Probuditi). Finally, they figure out a way to scare Trudy out of the trance, but Calvin’s mom knows that he has been up to some tomfoolery and sends him straight to his room. He stays there, missing his birthday dinner and cake. When Trudy brings him a peanut butter sandwich later in the evening, she leaves Calvin wondering who really outsmarted whom. The realistic illustrations, done totally in tones of sepia, capture the expressions of each character and the relationships among them in striking, almost eerie, ways. Those reading this book and observing the pictures will not soon forget this distinctive African-American family. 2006, Houghton Mifflin, $18.95. Ages 7 to 10. Reviewer: Phyllis Kennemer, Ph.D. (Children's Literature).
ISBN: 978-0-618-75502-8
ISBN: 0-618-75502-0
The Stranger
Chris Van Allsburg
This reissue of Van Allsburg’s tale of the origins of Indian summer will continue to both charm and mystify young readers. Summer is just turning to fall when Farmer Bailey hits a man crossing the road in front of his truck. The man is dressed in strange leather clothing and appears to be a wandering hermit. He suffers from amnesia, however, so the Baileys have no explanation for the man’s unusual behavior and the cold drafts they feel in his presence. The stranger stays on as a guest, helping with farm chores and joining in family activities. Then one day, he picks up a green leaf. As he breathes on it, the leaf turns to gold. Suddenly, the stranger’s memory returns. He quickly dons his old leather clothes, hugs the family good-bye, and vanishes. The Bailey’s feel a cool breeze and notice the trees changing colors. Each page of the text has a facing picture in full color. Van Allsburg’s signature illustrations illuminate the surreal feeling of the story. Suggested activities for using this book with students can be found on Van Allsburg’s web site: http://www.chrisvanallsburg.com. 1986, Houghton Mifflin, $18.95. Ages 7 to 11. Reviewer: Phyllis Kennemer, Ph.D. (Children's Literature).
Best Books:
Children's Catalog, Eighteenth Edition, 2001; H.W. Wilson; United States
Awards, Honors, Prizes:
Kentucky Bluegrass Award Winner 1990 Grades 4-8 Kentucky
New York Times Best Illustrated Children's Books of the Year Winner 1986 United States
State and Provincial Reading Lists:
Kentucky Bluegrass Award, 1990; Nominee; Kentucky
ISBN: 0-395-42331-7
Added 12/22/06
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