Chris Van Allsburg

A detailed Summary of Chris Van Allsburg

Chris Van Allsburg has been named one of the most intriguing authors and illustrators of children's books. He has a unique style that captivates children and adults alike. Often, a person's background and experiences influence their work. Imagination has many roots into the childhood of an individual.

Chris Van Allsburg grew up in a quiet suburban setting in Grand Rapids, Michigan. During the 1950's, when he was a child, the town was a place that seemed like a haven for any young boy. There were open fields that provided places for the children to enjoy a baseball game in the spring. The houses were not separated by fences, but rather blended together by the yards. The setting in which he grew up provided activities and locations that fostered imagination. He used to go down to the edge of a river and tried to catch tadpoles. Walking around in the wilderness that surrounded his town could be very relaxing and allow for the mind to conjure up many ideas. The child's mind has a great ability to make up stories, but when you are constantly "practicing" at make-believe, you tend to become better and better at it. You also come to develop your own unique style.

His first book was The Garden of Abdul Gasazi in 1979. He showed the world that he was a talented storybook writer. The public responded by buying more than a million copies. This book also received a Caldecott Medal Award. He would follow up with wonderful books such as The Mysteries of Harris Bur*censored*.

He must be a frequent dreamer, day and night, to make up such stories. I read both Just a Dream and Ben's Dream. One dealt with a little boy who had no respect for the environment. He never gave it much attention. Upon going on a journey into the future one night on his bed, he discovers where the world would be heading to if everyone had the attitude towards the environment like he did. He discovered, as the reader does through the remarkable illustrations, that we all must do our part to preserve the environment. The last picture of the book is an example of Chris Van Allsburg's style. After realizing how he should change his attitude, Walter plants a tree for his birthday. That night in his dream, he travels into a better future to a neighborhood where a man is mowing his lawn between two large trees. This perhaps represents the tree that he planted for his birthday and the one that his friend had planted the day before. The other book that dealt with dreams was Ben's Dream. This story took a boy on a journey through his geography textbook. He passed by all of the famous monuments that he was studying about. In the end you find out that his classmate was having the same dream and saw him there. The reader is left to wonder if they both really took the fabulous journey, or of it was just a coincidence that they had the same dream.

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Approximate Word count = 1418
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page double spaced)

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