About Chris Van Allsburg:
Chris Van Allsburg is an American illustrator and writer of children's books. He has won two Caldecott Medals for U.S. picture book illustration, for Jumanji (1981) and The Polar Express (1985), both of which he also wrote; both were later adapted as successful motion pictures. He was also a Caldecott runner-up in 1980 for The Garden of Abdul Gasazi. For his contribution as a children's illustrator he was 1986 U.S. nominee for the biennial, international Hans Christian Andersen Award, the highest international recognition for creators of children's books. He received the honorary degree of Doctor of Humane Letters from the University of Michigan in April 2012.
I write for what's left of the eight-year-old still rattling around inside my head.
Chris Van AllsburgThe idea of the extraordinary happening in the context of the ordinary is what's fascinating to me.
Chris Van AllsburgAs the years went by I became a writer and illustrator, although exclusively of fantasies.
Chris Van AllsburgI think, for the most part, our culture embraces that artists are born, not made.
Chris Van AllsburgI was about 28-29 when I wrote my first story, and that was called 'The Garden of Abdul Gasazi.'
Chris Van AllsburgAuthors of books are not given very much control over the films that are made from their books.
Chris Van Allsburg