Secret lives of Walter Mitty and of James Thurber

Name: Secret lives of Walter Mitty and of James Thurber
Author: Unknown Author
ISBN: 9780060847883

by Unknown Author

48 pages2006HarperCollins PublishersISBN 9780060847883

Fiction

Open in BookOwl Download on App Store

About this book

The WISP series (short for Wonderfully Illustrated Short Pieces) represents an ingenious marriage of two creative forces: the artistry of today's foremost children's book illustrators and the literary legacy of beloved authors of popular short works for adults. The resulting offspring of this union are captivating, full-color illustrated editions of timeless classics that readers will want to savor and collect. For the first time ever, the series makes selected popular short works previously offered only in collections available in a unique, stand-alone format. Also for the first time, WISPs harness the talents of top children's book illustrators for the benefit and delight of a new, older audience. The unique appeal of WISPs is brought to life in Marc Simont's The Secret Lives of Walter Mitty and James Thurber, which imaginatively renders the fantastic adventures of the famed protagonist in Thurber's beloved story, first published in 1939. Also included in this edition are Simont's renderings of Thurber's tongue-in-cheek autobiographical essay "The Secret Life of James Thurber", which first appeared in The New Yorker in 1943 and is not widely available. These one-of-a-kind, attractively priced and invitingly formatted illustrated editions will make a great impulse buy with broad appeal.

Publication Details

Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
Published: 2006
Pages: 48
ISBN: 9780060847883
Language: en

About Unknown Author

The author of The Secret Life of Walter Mitty and the creator of numerous New Yorker magazine cover cartoons, was born in Columbus, Ohio on December, 8, 1894. One of the foremost American humorists of the 20th century, his inimitable wit and pithy prose spanned a breadth of genres, including short stories, modern commentary, fiction, children's fantasy and letters. Thurber's father, Charles, was a civil clerk, and his mother, Mame, was an eccentric woman who would influence many of her son's stories. Thurber had two brothers, William and Robert. One day while playing "William Tell" with them as youngsters, Thurber lost the sight in one eye when an arrow pierced it. Ultimately, he would go blind in both eyes, but that never stopped him from writing or drawing. Thurber CarnivalFrom 1913-1917, Thurber attended the Ohio State University where he was a member of the Phi Kappa Psi fraternity. It was at this time that the Thurbers rented the house at 77 Jefferson Avenue, which became Thurber House in 1984. Due to his eye injury, Thurber was not able to complete a compulsory ROTC course so OSU would not let him graduate, although they did give him an honorary degree later. Thurber launched his professional writing career as a reporter for the Columbus Dispatch in 1920. He began writing for the New Yorker in 1927 after friend E.B. White (Charlotte's Web) got him a job at the magazine. Thurber started as an editor for the magazine but quickly became a writer. His career as a cartoonist began in 1930, when White dug some of Thurber's drawings out of the trash and submitted them to be published in the New Yorker. Thurber wrote nearly forty books and won a Tony Award for his popular Broadway play, A Thurber Carnival, in which he often starred as himself. Thurber died of complications from pneumonia on November 2, 1961. --Thurberhouse.org