John Bellairs (1938–1991)
Autore di The House with a Clock in Its Walls
Sull'Autore
John Bellairs was born in Marshall, Michigan on January 17, 1938. He attended Notre Dame and the University of Chicago. Prior to becoming a full-time writer, he was a teacher. He went on to author fifteen graphic novels for young adults, one fantasy book "The Face in the Frost," and two other mostra altro books. His works have been nominated for several awards in the past. Among those nominated for, he won the Utah Children's Fiction Book Award in 1981 for "The Letter, the Witch and the Ring" and the New York Times Outstanding Books of 1973 Award for "The House with a Clock in Its Walls." Bellairs died of cardiovascular disease, on March 8, 1991. (Bowker Author Biography) mostra meno
Fonte dell'immagine: John Bellairs
Serie
Opere di John Bellairs
The Best of John Bellairs: The House with a Clock in Its Walls; The Figure in the Shadows; The Letter, the Witch, and… (1998) 227 copie
John Bellairs 6 Volumes Set: Figure in the Shadows, Treasure of Alpheus Winterborn, Mummy, the Will & the Crypt, Lamp… (1985) 1 copia
Opere correlate
The Specter From the Magician's Museum (Lewis Barnavelt) (1998) — Autore, alcune edizioni — 153 copie
A funny thing happened to the church; humor, cartoons, satire, and fiction from the pages of the Critic — Collaboratore, alcune edizioni — 6 copie
Etichette
Informazioni generali
- Nome canonico
- Bellairs, John
- Nome legale
- Bellairs, John Anthony
- Data di nascita
- 1938-01-17
- Data di morte
- 1991-03-08
- Luogo di sepoltura
- Greenwood Cemetery, Haverhill, Massachusetts, USA
- Sesso
- male
- Nazionalità
- USA
- Luogo di nascita
- Marshall, Michigan, USA
- Luogo di morte
- Haverhill, Massachusetts, USA
- Causa della morte
- cardiovascular disease
- Luogo di residenza
- Marshall, Michigan, USA
South Bend, Indiana, USA
Chicago, Illinois, USA
Winona, Minnesota, USA
Mount Carroll, Illinois, USA
Bristol, Gloucestershire, England, UK (mostra tutto 9)
Boston, Massachusetts, USA
North Andover, Massachusetts, USA
Haverhill, Massachusetts, USA - Istruzione
- University of Notre Dame (BA|1959)
University of Chicago (MA|1960) - Attività lavorative
- fantasy author
teacher - Premi e riconoscimenti
- Haverhill Citizens Hall of Fame (2000)
Utah Children's Fiction Book Award (1981) - Breve biografia
- John Bellairs is best known as the author of 15 gothic mystery novels for young adults, comprising the "Lewis Barnavelt", "Anthony Monday", and "Johnny Dixon" series (which included 1973's "The House with a Clock in its Walls"). The book, illustrated by Edward Gorey, and "The Treasure of Alpheus Winterborn" (1978), about a rumored fortune buried in the walls of a town library, were made into television movies for children. He also penned "St. Fidgeta and Other Parodies," "The Pedant and the Shuffly," and the Tolkien-inspired fantasy "The Face in the Frost." Born in Michigan, he earned a BA in English from Notre Dame in 1959 and attended graduate school at the University of Chicago. Later, he taught English at various Midwestern and New England colleges before relocating to live and write in Haverhill, Massachusetts. He died of cardiovascular disease in 1991.
Utenti
Discussioni
Teen supernatural horror from the 80's in Name that Book (Settembre 2012)
Horror Series read as kid in Name that Book (Novembre 2010)
Recensioni
Well, this was a lot more horrorizing (to use a word invented by my grandson) than I expected, based on other Bellairs books I've read. And using voudon as the entire plot, background, and everything of the book is a pretty bold move. I don't know if the authors actually did any research, I certainly have not, but when you're taking an actual religion and/or cultural phenomenon that's not your own, it's good to put in an author's note to enable your readers to know. Is this purely fantasy (in which case a disclaimer would be courteous) or is there any grain of truth? One of the things I have always liked about Bellairs is that he gets Catholicism and its appurtenances right, unlike (for example) Stoker. Not sure he's getting voudon right at all.
Great Edward Gorey frontispiece! I'm so glad that he stuck with the series for so long.… (altro)
Great Edward Gorey frontispiece! I'm so glad that he stuck with the series for so long.… (altro)
A little too heavy on the religion this time around with Johnny Dixon's priest friend doling out Catholic voodoo against a vengeful ghost but still a fun read even if you forget to say your prayers.
The House with a Clock in Its Walls is a delightful read for middle graders.
Last year I finally got to see the film adaptation and I was blown away! I had so much fun with the legendary tale that was packed full of colour and imagination. Naturally, I wanted to give the book a go to see where the adaptation came from. Lucky my found this book on accident, and ever since I've been staring at it on my shelf. I finally picked the book up, and it was a nice, little binge read for me!
This book is fantastical. It is littered with magic, wizards, witches and friendship, giving it just enough 'umph' to keep the reader glued and enchanted. Lewis is a kid we can all relate to. He does have a tragic back story with the loss of his parents, but he just wants to be friendly and fit in. Lewis isn't amazing at sports, but he tries! He's kind of awkward, but he's super curious. This young boy wants to learn magic and have fun with his family. He works hard to impress others to gain their friendship, but it turns out when he's just being himself and meets the right people, everything falls into place.
Uncle Johnathan and Mrs. Zimmerman are kooky, spooky and filled with fun. They bring an Addams Family friendly vibe to a spooky middle grade tale. Uncle Johnathan is a wizard. He's not the most powerful, but he's fun and eccentric in all the best ways! He's a caring figure who does his best to help Lewis. He's not mean, but he can be strict. Uncle Johnathan never comes off as cruel, instead he seems like the guardian Lewis needs after such an incredibly sudden loss. Mrs. Zimmerman is Uncle Johnathan's friend, and she's a mighty great witch. She's not scary either. Instead, she's wickedly smart and always down for a great ride or game. The two together make for a fabulous set of guardians to help Lewis grow and learn. You don't see that too often in middle grade and young adult books, so extra applause here please.
Lewis gets himself into a little trouble when he starts investigating the death of the former owner of Uncle Johnathan's house. This house is mighty special, like the title suggests. There seems to be a clock in it's walls! But why? Lewis goes on investigating, and starts more trouble than you could ever imagine... But don't worry, with Lewis, Uncle Johnathan and Mrs. Zimmerman, there will definitely be a way to sort out the mischief! They make one great team.
This book isn't scary in the sense of flesh, gore or blood. It's mighty friendly! It's spooky due to the mysteries, twists and turns that the book does and can take. You don't know for sure what is happening until you start unravelling the mystery.
I applaud John Bellairs. This book was mighty fun and not scary. Middle graders deserve spooky and fun books! I highly recommend this book for a introduction to the land of spooky, creepy, crawly and kooky!
Four out of five stars.… (altro)
Last year I finally got to see the film adaptation and I was blown away! I had so much fun with the legendary tale that was packed full of colour and imagination. Naturally, I wanted to give the book a go to see where the adaptation came from. Lucky my found this book on accident, and ever since I've been staring at it on my shelf. I finally picked the book up, and it was a nice, little binge read for me!
This book is fantastical. It is littered with magic, wizards, witches and friendship, giving it just enough 'umph' to keep the reader glued and enchanted. Lewis is a kid we can all relate to. He does have a tragic back story with the loss of his parents, but he just wants to be friendly and fit in. Lewis isn't amazing at sports, but he tries! He's kind of awkward, but he's super curious. This young boy wants to learn magic and have fun with his family. He works hard to impress others to gain their friendship, but it turns out when he's just being himself and meets the right people, everything falls into place.
Uncle Johnathan and Mrs. Zimmerman are kooky, spooky and filled with fun. They bring an Addams Family friendly vibe to a spooky middle grade tale. Uncle Johnathan is a wizard. He's not the most powerful, but he's fun and eccentric in all the best ways! He's a caring figure who does his best to help Lewis. He's not mean, but he can be strict. Uncle Johnathan never comes off as cruel, instead he seems like the guardian Lewis needs after such an incredibly sudden loss. Mrs. Zimmerman is Uncle Johnathan's friend, and she's a mighty great witch. She's not scary either. Instead, she's wickedly smart and always down for a great ride or game. The two together make for a fabulous set of guardians to help Lewis grow and learn. You don't see that too often in middle grade and young adult books, so extra applause here please.
Lewis gets himself into a little trouble when he starts investigating the death of the former owner of Uncle Johnathan's house. This house is mighty special, like the title suggests. There seems to be a clock in it's walls! But why? Lewis goes on investigating, and starts more trouble than you could ever imagine... But don't worry, with Lewis, Uncle Johnathan and Mrs. Zimmerman, there will definitely be a way to sort out the mischief! They make one great team.
This book isn't scary in the sense of flesh, gore or blood. It's mighty friendly! It's spooky due to the mysteries, twists and turns that the book does and can take. You don't know for sure what is happening until you start unravelling the mystery.
I applaud John Bellairs. This book was mighty fun and not scary. Middle graders deserve spooky and fun books! I highly recommend this book for a introduction to the land of spooky, creepy, crawly and kooky!
Four out of five stars.… (altro)
Liste
Which house? (2)
Edward Gorey Covers (17)
Witchy Fiction (1)
Summer Books (1)
1960s (1)
Elevenses (1)
Five star books (3)
1990s (4)
Ghosts (4)
1980s (7)
Gateway Horror (16)
1970s (2)
music to my eyes (1)
Premi e riconoscimenti
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Autori correlati
Statistiche
- Opere
- 38
- Opere correlate
- 10
- Utenti
- 11,224
- Popolarità
- #2,102
- Voto
- 3.8
- Recensioni
- 230
- ISBN
- 408
- Lingue
- 11
- Preferito da
- 46
The illustrations by Edward Gorey are fantastic but what is best about this book is how it taps into a child's wild imagination to help immerse him or her into Lewis's world of Gothic horror. I was ecstatic to rediscover one of my favorite scenes (the nighttime car chase to the bridge) - my 42-year old self had retained this vivid scene (and the intense, creepy emotions it invoked) but had forgotten which book it was from.
Without realizing it, this book was probably the impetus for my love of books with creepy, magical themes (e.g., Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell is an all-time favorite read...and listen...and viewing). Now that I have this little gem back in my possession, I will not be letting it go.… (altro)