Friday, July 04, 2008

Forgotten Books: The 21 Balloons -- William Pene Du Bois

Actually, this one hasn't been forgotten at all. I was delighted to discover, when poking around the Internet, that lots of people remember it as fondly as I do. There's even a nice Wikipedia article with a complete plot summary that will save me the trouble of writing one. Briefly, you have ballooning, riches beyond your wildest dreams, a trip around the world in 40 days, and the biggest explosion in history. How can you resist?


The 21 Balloons was published in 1947 and won a Newbery award. I probably read it a year or two after that, and I was astounded and delighted, so much so that I read it several times over the years of my childhood. A few years ago, I bought a used copy and was astounded and delighted all over again. Maybe you will be, too, if you choose to read it.

5 comments:

Todd Mason said...

I certainly dug THE 21 BALLOONS, too...Du Bois and Robert McCloskey (he of HOMER PRICE and the fine illos for Keith Robertson's books) (and, I suppose I should add, James Thurber) were my favorite illustrator/writers targeting my age cohort when I was that age.

Todd Mason said...

Oh, and though it never looks right, Newbery with one R...

mybillcrider said...

Thanks, Todd. I knew that, but my fingers didn't obey. I'll make the fix.

pattinase (abbott) said...

Thanks. Bill. I remember reading this one.

Anonymous said...

I remember enjoying this one!