The Chronicles of Harris Burdick

This beautifully-presented collection of short stories is inspired by the classic picture book The Mysteries of Harris Burdick by Chris van Allsburg, first published in 1984.

In the original story, a man called Harris Burdick leaves a mysterious set of drawings to illustrate a series of stories he has written with a publisher, promising to return with the stories the next day... but then disappears, never to be heard of again. All the publisher is left with is his surreal and strange illustrations, with a title and caption for each picture. The reader must use their own imagination to create the story behind each picture, and to connect the stories together.

The Chronicles of Harris Burdick is an intriguing response to The Mysteries of Harris Burdick, bringing together a host of well-known authors of both adult and children's fictions to complete the stories. Authors including Kate DiCamillo, Cory Doctorow, Stephen King, Lois Lowry, Louis Sachar and Jon Scieska take their cue from Chris van Allsburg's enigmatic images and imagine what might happen next in 14 strange stories.

Unpredictable, imaginative and thought-provoking, this is a diverse and suitably mysterious short story collection.