Authors Dish on How They Arrange Their Libraries

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You can imagine a writer needs a big library from which to draw inspiration.  But how to keep them all organized? Writers divulge their library secrets in Unpack My Library: Writers and Their Books by Leah Price. Find The Phantom Tollbooth in Jonathan Lethem's library and see what Philip Pullman's got to say (he wrote one of the essays in the 50th Anniversary edition of The Phantom Tollbooth)

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Production Update: Stills from our shoot with Eric Carle

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We were thrilled to interview Eric Carle (author/illustrator of The Hungry Caterpillar and other beloved children's books) and his wife Bobbie - spending a lovely day with them talking about their 35 year long relationship with Norton and Jeanne Juster, their old dog named Tock, and their founding of The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art. [gallery]

A lovely comment from one of our backers

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One of our backers writes:"I read the book when I was 12 years old. My family had just moved to Memphis from Denver, and it was quite the cultural shock. We didn't stay long. I had a book on the early comic book heroes written by Jules Feiffer, and through that, I discovered "The Phantom Tollbooth." It brought some sense to the chaos of my life at the time, and I can't count the number of times I re-read it. I also recall reading it to a Wendy Carlos rendition of a selection from Bach's "Well-Tempered Clavier," so the music and the book are now inextricably linked to each other. I'm certain my memories will be linked to this film as well, which I eagerly await!"

Production Update: Stills from our shoot with Martha Minow

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We visited Martha Minow at Harvard where she is the Dean of the Law school to talk to her about one of her all time favorite books - The Phantom Tollbooth.  We talked to her about the essay she wrote for the 50th Anniversary Edition, such as when she writes: "The rewards of laughter come with memorable cautions against the distractions of trivia: the recognition that a sense of humor can preserve purpose and proportion, and that even the smallest “but” can topple unjustified authority." [gallery order="DESC"]

Production Update: Stills from our shoot with Bill Harley

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We got the chance to spend the morning with Bill Harley - the rare adult who really understands kids and makes great songs and stories to prove it.[gallery columns="2"] Was wonderful to hear his insights into The Phantom Tollbooth which he read to his sons, as well as his thoughts on profound nonsense, such as his recitation of "one bright day inthe middle of the night two dead boys got up to fight, back to back they faced each other drew their swords and shot each other deaf policeman heard the noise, came and shot the two dead boys, if you don't believe this lie is true, go ask the blind man, he saw it too."

If you don't know him already, check out more of what he does at www.billharley.com