William Joyce does a lot of stuff but children's books are his true bailiwick (The Guardians series, Dinosaur Bob series, George Shrinks, and the #1 New York Times bestselling The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore, which is also his Academy Award-winning short film, to name a few). He lives in Shreveport, Louisiana. Talk to William Joyce and see upcoming work on Instagram.
Joe Bluhm is an Academy Award-winning artist who worked with William Joyce on The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore. He's also a character designer, animator, and recovering theme park caricaturist. He lives in Louisiana. Visit him at JoeBluhm.Blogspot.com.
* "If you loved the Oscar-winning film that goes by the same title,
you will take to heart the book on which it is based. William Joyce
exploits each medium to the fullest. Morris Lessmore's life 'was a
book of his own writing, one orderly page after another.' This
serene opening scene shatters when a twister carries Morris away
and sets him down in a black-and-white terrain. A woman appears in
vibrant color in the sky, pulled by 'a festive squadron of flying
books.' She sends down a volume with Humpty Dumpty featured in its
pages, and the fellow leads Morris to a large building where light
shines through the windows and shelves of books flutter their
pages, 'as if each book were asking to be opened.' In Joyce's
artwork, the books come to life as a full cast of characters. After
Morris repairs a damaged book, he reads it to revive it. He runs
across the tops of capital letters and dangles from the hook of a
J. 'All stories matter, '" he concludes. As Morris distributes
books to his queued-up neighbors, they turn from black-and-white
sketches to full-color portraits. In the most moving scene, the
books surround the now white-haired man: 'Morris Lessmore became
stooped and crinkly. But the books never changed. Their stories
stayed the same, '" and they care for him as he has cared for them.
Morris stands in for all book lovers, and reminds us of the way
stories live on only when we share them." -- Shelf Awareness,
starred review
* "Ironically, this book in praise of books first appeared as a
much-praised iPad app and Academy Award-winning animated short
film.
The story, in a nutshell, concerns the titular book-loving Mr.
Morris Lessmore, whose personal library is blown away in a terrible
wind but who finds meaning caring for the books he finds in a
marvelous library. Filled with both literary (Shakespeare,
Humpty-Dumpty) and film references (The Wizard of Oz, The Red
Balloon and Buster Keaton), the picture book version of Joyce's
story has a quiet contemplative charm that demonstrates the
continuing allure of the printed page. Paradoxically, the animated
books of the film and app are captured as though in a series of
frozen frames. The motif of the bound, printed book is everywhere.
Even the furnishings and architectural details of the old-fashioned
library in which the books "nest" like flying birds recall the
codex. The unifying metaphor of life as story is a powerful one, as
is the theme of the transformative power of books. The emphasis on
connecting readers and books and the care of books pays homage to
librarianship. Rich in allusions ("Less is More") and brilliant in
depicting the passage of time (images conflate times of day,
seasons and years), Joyce's work will inspire contemplation of the
power of the book in its many forms.
As triumphant in book form as in animated and interactive
ones."
--Kirkus Reviews, starred review
"Joyce's magnificently illustrated book-about-books inspired--yet
arrives after--his 2011 animated short film of the same name, which
won an Oscar. The unusual sequence of film-to-book (there's an app,
too) suggests that while books are indeed glorious things, what
really matters is story. This one follows a dreamy bibliophile
named Morris Lessmore, who loses his cherished book collection to a
cataclysmic storm that's half Katrina (Joyce is from Louisiana) and
half Wizard of Oz. After meeting a "lovely lady... being pulled
along by a festive squadron of flying books," Morris finds an
abandoned library whose books are alive and whose covers beat like
the wings of birds. They flutter around him protectively, watch as
he starts writing again, and care for him as he ages: "They read
themselves to him each night." Underneath this book-about-books,
there's a deeper story of love, loss, and healing, one that will be
appreciated as much (if not more) by adults as by children."
--Publishers Weekly
"Joyce's Academy Award-winning animated short-film-turned-app that
celebrates those who care about (and receive nourishment from)
books is, ironically, now a picture book. The wonder and mystery
inherent in the wordless film and the ability to manipulate the
visuals and play the soundtrack on the app's piano beg the
question: Can the book compete? As it turns out, the book has its
own rewards. Clarity comes from Joyce's well-chosen words. In the
opening on a New Orleans balcony, readers learn that Morris "loved
words...stories...books." Every day he would "write of his joys and
sorrows, of all that he knew and everything that he hoped for."
When an Oz-like storm turns everything topsy-turvy, the melancholy
man in the pork-pie hat spots a lady held aloft by a "festive
squadron of flying books." Her gift leads Morris to a book-filled
sanctuary set in a landscape staged and lit like a Maxfield Parrish
painting. He tends to the volumes, distributing favorites to
visitors, whose once-gray bodies blossom with color. Every life and
story ends, and those struggling with their own goodbyes (and
yearnings about printed books) may find comfort in seeing the
fading elder revert to his younger self in order to be transported
by the joyful squadron-just as a little girl arrives to choose
Morris's story. The author's motivations (explained on the flap)
will resonate with adults in the reading business. The best part?
Lingering quietly while savoring the atmospheric scenes of Joyce's
narrative vignette." -SLJ, August 2012
JOYCE, William. The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore.
illus. by author. 56p. S & S/Atheneum. 2012. ebook $12.99. ISBN
978-1-4424-6489-6; Tr $17.99. ISBN 978-1-4424-5702-7. Pre-Gr
3-Joyce's Academy Award-winning animated short-film-turned-app that
celebrates those who care about (and receive nourishment from)
books is, ironically, now a picture book. The wonder and mystery
inherent in the wordless film and the ability to manipulate the
visuals and play the soundtrack on the app's piano beg the
question: Can the book compete? As it turns out, the book has its
own rewards. Clarity comes from Joyce's well-chosen words. In the
opening on a New Orleans balcony, readers learn that Morris "loved
words...stories...books." Every day he would "write of his joys and
sorrows, of all that he knew and everything that he hoped for."
When an Oz-like storm turns everything topsy-turvy, the melancholy
man in the pork-pie hat spots a lady held aloft by a "festive
squadron of flying books." Her gift leads Morris to a book-filled
sanctuary set in a landscape staged and lit like a Maxfield Parrish
painting. He tends to the volumes, distributing favorites to
visitors, whose once-gray bodies blossom with color. Every life and
story ends, and those struggling with their own goodbyes (and
yearnings about printed books) may find comfort in seeing the
fading elder revert to his younger self in order to be transported
by the joyful squadron-just as a little girl arrives to choose
Morris's story. The author's motivations (explained on the flap)
will resonate with adults in the reading business. The best part?
Lingering quietly while savoring the atmospheric scenes of Joyce's
narrative vignette. -SLJ, August 2012
Pre-Gr 3-Joyce's Academy Award-winning animated short-film-turned-app that celebrates those who care about (and receive nourishment from) books is, ironically, now a picture book. The wonder and mystery inherent in the wordless film and the ability to manipulate the visuals and play the soundtrack on the app's piano beg the question: Can the book compete? As it turns out, the book has its own rewards. Clarity comes from Joyce's well-chosen words. In the opening on a New Orleans balcony, readers learn that Morris "loved words.stories.books." Every day he would "write of his joys and sorrows, of all that he knew and everything that he hoped for." When an Oz-like storm turns everything topsy-turvy, the melancholy man in the pork-pie hat spots a lady held aloft by a "festive squadron of flying books." Her gift leads Morris to a book-filled sanctuary set in a landscape staged and lit like a Maxfield Parrish painting. He tends to the volumes, distributing favorites to visitors, whose once-gray bodies blossom with color. Every life and story ends, and those struggling with their own goodbyes (and yearnings about printed books) may find comfort in seeing the fading elder revert to his younger self in order to be transported by the joyful squadron-just as a little girl arrives to choose Morris's story. The author's motivations (explained on the flap) will resonate with adults in the reading business. The best part? Lingering quietly while savoring the atmospheric scenes of Joyce's narrative vignette.-Wendy Lukehart, Washington DC Public Library (c) Copyright 2012. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Ask a Question About this Product More... |