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John Anthony Bellairs (January 17, 1938 March 8, 1991) was an American author, best known for his fantasy novel The Face in the Frost and many gothic mystery novels for young adults featuring the characters Lewis Barnavelt, Anthony Monday, and Johnny Dixon.Bellairs was born in Marshall, Michigan, earned degrees from Notre Dame and the University of Chicago, taught at various Midwestern and New England colleges, and later lived and wrote in Haverhill, Massachusetts.

He maintained a lifelong interest in archaeology, architecture, kitschy antiques, bad poetry, traveling to the UK, and studying history and Latin. His favorite authors included Charles Dickens, Henry James, C.V. Wedgwood, and Garrett Mattingly.He especially admired author M.R. James, from whose ghost stories he occasionally borrowed elements to work into his own fiction.

John got his first big success with the novel The House With A Clock In Its Walls, first published in 1973.The book begins when the recently orphaned Lewis Barnavelt moves to live with his mysterious uncle Jonathan. Jonathan turns out to be a warlock, while his next-door neighbor and good friend, Florence Zimmermann, is a far more powerful good witch. Jonathan's house was previously owned by a sinister couple who had dedicated their lives to black magic, and plotted to bring about the end of the world. Before dying, they constructed the diabolical clock that he hid somewhere inside the walls of the house, where it eternally ticks, still attempting to pull the world into the magical alignment.

Part of Bellairs success was tied to his frequent illustrator, Edward Gorey.Edward St. John Gorey (February 22, 1925 April 15, 2000) was an American writer and artist noted for his macabre illustrated books.His characteristic pen-and-ink drawings often depict vaguely unsettling narrative scenes in Victorian and Edwardian settings.Gorey shared Bellairs love of dark, gothic themes, and created iconic covers and illustrations which have made the books much sought-after collectors items.

The Figure in the Shadows (1975) Sure that his Grandpa Barnavelt's lucky piece is really a magical talisman in disguise, Lewis wears it and begins to be followed by a shadowy figure who seems to want nothing less than his life.The Letter, the Witch, and the Ring (1976) Following clues in a mysterious deathbed letter, Rose Rita and Mrs. Zimmerman embark on a summer adventure that turns evil when they reach their destination and are lured into the sinister world of the occult.The Treasure of Alpheus Winterborn (1978) The one about a treasure, who knows where it is hid? The first book with Anthony, a pretty resourceful kid. With his parents often worried because money's always tight, with Miss Eells, can Anthony find the secret site?The Curse of the Blue Figurine (1983) The one about a figurine that has a mighty curse, the one that has a priest who wants his death reversed. Powers are unleashed when Johnny finds his ring, Father Baart is coming soon hark the angels sing!

The Mummy, the Will, and the Crypt (1983) The one that has a will that's been lost for many years, the one about a guardian who knows when it appears? But Johnny keeps on searching - it surely must be found - or will he face the mummy and be drug off underground?The Dark Secret of Weatherend (1984) When Anthony Monday and Miss Eells the librarian find a book that reveals a plan to turn the world to ice, they know that they must find the person responsible and stop him before it is too late.The Spell of the Sorcerer's Skull (1984) The one about a piece of bone that has an evil spell - is this the one where Childermass will make a fond farewell? But Johnny's on a mission to make the magic end, and to try to stop a curse that is destructive to his friend.The Revenge of the Wizard's Ghost (1985) Thirteen-year-old Johnny Dixon is dying, possessed by the ghost of the evil Warren Windrow, and that leaves Professor Childermass and Fergie to risk their lives in order to save him.

The Eyes of the Killer Robot (1986) Johnny Dixon finds himself in danger when a maniacal wizard invents a robot that can only by activated by human eyes.The Lamp from the Warlock's Tomb (1988) Anthony Monday and Miss Eells recover a magic lamp that was stolen from a warlock's tomb and is spreading evil to further the wicked ends of the thief.The Trolley to Yesterday (1989) Johnny and Fergie travel back in time with Professor Childermass in a old streetcar to the year 1453 and become immersed in the struggle to save the Byzantine Empire from destruction at the hands of the Turks.The Chessmen of Doom (1989) Johnny Dixon, Fergie and Professor Childermass comply with a strange will left by the Professor's brother, which requires them to spend the summer at a desolate estate where they encounter a madman bent on destroying the world.

The Secret of the Underground Room (1990) When Father Higgins disappears, Johnny Dixon and Professor Childermass discover disturbing clues which lead them to England and an encounter with a long-dead knight.The Mansion in the Mist (1992) Anthony Monday, Miss Eells, and her brother Emerson encounter unexpected adventure when they vacation on a desolate Canadian island and find a chest that can transport them to another world where a maniacal group are plotting the destruction of people on Earth.

John Bellairs died in 1991 at the age of 53 from heart failure.After his death, author Brad Strickland completed four novels from preliminary drafts Bellairs had created, including: The Ghost in the MirrorThe Vengeance of the WitchfinderThe Drum, The Doll and the Zombie, and The Doom of the Haunted Opera.

Strickland has kept Bellairs' legacy alive, writing his own further adventures that include: The Hand of the Necromancer (1996)The Bell, the Book, and the Spellbinder (1997)The Specter From the Magician's Museum (1998)The Wrath of the Grinning Ghost (1999)The Beast Under the Wizard's Bridge (2000)The Tower at the End of the World (2001)The Whistle, the Grave, and the Ghost (2003)The House Where Nobody Lived (2006)The Sign of the Sinister Sorcerer (2008)

John Bellairs was honored by his hometown in 1992 with a historical marker outside the famed residence that served as inspiration for The House with a Clock in its Walls, and later, in 2000, was inducted into the Haverhill, Massachusetts Hall of Fame.So, if youre interested in stories that involve mystery, magic, and dark, spooky spectres, zombies, witches, ghosts, and ghouls, you might find yourself drawn into the dark web of John Bellairs world!

A NUTSY THE SQUIRREL PRODUCTIONCOPYRIGHT 2016 OAK HILLS MEDIA CENTERALL RIGHTS RESERVED

BIBLIOGRAPHYhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Bellairshttp://www.bellairsia.com/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Gorey

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