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Need help finding a children's book

The TVClubHouse: Movies/Library ARCHIVES: Movies & Library 2006: Need help finding a children's book users admin

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Gradstudent
Member

07-10-2005

Tuesday, June 27, 2006 - 12:16 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Gradstudent a private message Print Post    
I hope someone can help...

When I took my Children's Literature class about 6 years ago, my professor showed and told us about a book that was nothing but pictures by an unknown artist.

The story behind the book was that a man went into a publisher and wanted someone to write stories to go with these pictures that he had drawn. (I think they were in pencil or charcoal and were beautifully done!) Well, he agreed to leave the pictures with the publisher but he never came back to get them. He left no name and no way to contact him...he just simply never returned. The publisher decided to print the pictures as a book with no words, with the story of the man as the forward - in hopes that he (or a family member in the case of his death) would contact them and claim his book. No one ever did.

I thought I had written the name of this book down, but I didn't and I'm just sick about it. I didn't even write down the publishers name! I've also tried to reach my old Children's Lit professor, but she has moved on and I can't seem to locate her.

I'm sorry that I have no further information - but if anyone has ever heard of this book, will you please let me know?

Thanks.
Grad

Jan
Moderator

08-01-2000

Tuesday, June 27, 2006 - 1:29 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Jan a private message Print Post    
I am sorry I cannot help you Grad, but I sure hope someone can. I just wanted to let you know that your note is being read.

Gradstudent
Member

07-10-2005

Tuesday, June 27, 2006 - 2:41 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Gradstudent a private message Print Post    
Thanks, Jan. I have about given up looking for it - but I thought if anyone would know about it, someone on TVCH would. These people are the experts about everything!

Supergranny
Member

02-03-2005

Tuesday, June 27, 2006 - 5:13 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Supergranny a private message Print Post    
Grad..have you tried to go to Zaba search and look up your professor's name? Might be a way to get a hold of her. My mother was a librarian so I've lived with books all my long life..I can't recall a book like that. Sorry.

Gradstudent
Member

07-10-2005

Tuesday, June 27, 2006 - 7:08 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Gradstudent a private message Print Post    
Thanks, Supergranny! I didn't know about Zaba search. I looked her up and there are 98 people with her name...but I will track her down! (Her husband is in the military, so they could be anywhere.)

There is a particular reason that I am looking for it. I work with kids who have emotional problems and some of them have trouble talking. But by having them tell or write stories, we can learn so much about what they are thinking and why. This book had the most incredible pictures in it that were just ripe for story telling. During the course we even had to do an assignment where she opened the book to a page and we all had to do a short 20 minute story on it, then share them with the class. It was so interesting how the pictures evoked such different ideas from all of us. Some of us told sad stories, some told calm and peaceful tales, and there were a few fearful variations - all from the same picture. I just keep thinking that this book would be useful in helping some of our kids to open up.

Anyway, thanks for letting me know about that Zaba option, Supergranny. I really, really appreciate it.

Teachmichigan
Member

07-22-2001

Tuesday, June 27, 2006 - 8:25 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Teachmichigan a private message Print Post    
I've not heard of this book, but when you find it, will you post the info Grad? It sounds like an excellent book!

Gradstudent
Member

07-10-2005

Tuesday, June 27, 2006 - 9:17 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Gradstudent a private message Print Post    
I will, Teach. It really is a beautiful book...and how sad that the man never got credit for his work.

Teachmichigan
Member

07-22-2001

Wednesday, June 28, 2006 - 9:15 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Teachmichigan a private message Print Post    
I posted your request on another board, and I already received an answer. She says it is "The Mysteries of Harris Burdick" by Chris vanAllsburg. Here's the link to the amazon site -- looks like it fits the bill! :-)

Amazon

One of the editorials/reviews includes this tidbit: "Few books for small children actively encourage you to read a long wordy Introduction to them first. This is one of the few. Before we see any of the pictures we are told a tale of one Mr. Wenders and one Mr. Burdick. Mr. Wenders was once a children's book publisher. As he was sitting in his office one day a Mr. Harris Burdick arrived with fourteen illustrations. It seems that Mr. Burdick had written fourteen stories and he had brought an illustration from each of these for the perusal of Mr. Wenders. After dropping off the pictures (each with its own title and line from the book it belonged to) he left and was never seen again. This book is a presentation of those mysterious images, all suggesting that they belong to magical stories of their own. The introductory story, I should probably point out, is utterly false. But it gives some nice context to the images that follow and hopefully kids will still dig them."

Calamity
Member

10-18-2001

Wednesday, June 28, 2006 - 11:33 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Calamity a private message Print Post    
Oh, I just saw this thread! I know that Van Allsburg book - I'm such a fan of his work. I still check out picture books from the library from time to time even though I don't even have kids, lol.

Gradstudent
Member

07-10-2005

Wednesday, June 28, 2006 - 12:39 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Gradstudent a private message Print Post    
Teach, you are the best and I owe you a huge finder's fee!!!!!!! Thank you so much.....

I have to say that I am disappointed that the introductory story is false. I'm sure my professor presented it to us as true...but it could be that I am just gullible. My math professor did the same thing to me. He was from India and told us the story of how poor he was as a child and how his mother scrimped and saved to buy him clothing after he was awarded a scholarship to a Catholic Elementary School. He said he was very bad in math until he started attending the Catholic School, but that something there changed him and he began to excell. When asked by his mother what had changed for him, he said that there was a man hanging on a plus sign in each of his classes and that he was frightened that he would be hung on a plus sign, too, if he did not learn his math.

Gullible me - it touched my heart so much that he did not understand who Jesus was as a child, until I overheard him telling someone on the last day of class that plus sign math "joke".

I felt so dumb...

Anyway, Teach - thank you again! I knew that TVCH was the go for help. You are the best!

Dolphinschild
Member

06-22-2006

Wednesday, June 28, 2006 - 12:53 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Dolphinschild a private message Print Post    
Oh wow Grad! I read this email I got on the 21st and it is called the Plus Sign and this was the email. I guess it has been around for awhile. I am glad you found the book too, I was so interested in your previous post, that I wanted to see the book for myself as well.

The Plus Sign

Little Zachary was doing very badly in math.
His parents had tried everything... Tutors,
Mentors, flash cards, special learning centers.
In short, everything they could think of
to help his math.

Finally, in a last ditch effort, they took
Zachary down and enrolled him in the local Catholic school. After the first day, little Zachary came home with a very serious look on his face. He didn't even kiss his mother hello.
Instead, he went straight to his room and
started studying. Books and papers were spread
out all over the room and little Zachary was hard at work. His mother was amazed. She called him down to dinner.

To her shock, the minute he was done, he marched back to his room without a word, and in no time, he was back hitting the books as hard as before. This went on for some time, day after day, while the mother tried to understand what made all the difference.
Finally, little Zachary brought home his report
card. He quietly laid it on the table, went up to his room an d hit the books. With great trepidation, his Mom looked at it and to her great surprise, little Zachary got an "A" in math. She could no longer hold her curiosity.

She went to his room and said, "Son, what was it?
Was it the nuns?" Little Zachary looked at her and shook his head, no. "Well, then," she replied, was it the books, the discipline, the structure, the uniforms? "WHAT WAS IT?"

Little Zachary looked at her and said, "Well, on
the first day of school when I saw that guy nailed to the plus sign, I knew they weren't fooling around."

Gradstudent
Member

07-10-2005

Wednesday, June 28, 2006 - 1:42 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Gradstudent a private message Print Post    
LOL Dolphin - see? I'm so gullible...

Teachmichigan
Member

07-22-2001

Wednesday, June 28, 2006 - 5:41 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Teachmichigan a private message Print Post    
Too funny, Dolphin! :-)

Glad to be of help, Grad! :-) I'll pass your thanks along to the person who REALLY knew the answer!

Actually, I'm surprised I hadn't heard of this -- VanAllsburg (author/illustrator of Polar Express) is from my hometown and one of my favorite illustrators. Learn something new every day. :-)