Mark Burgess (children's author)
Encyclopedia
Mark Burgess is best-known as an English author and illustrator of children's literature
. He has illustrated books by Tony Bradman
and Martin Waddell
. Among his most recent assignments, he illustrated Return to the Hundred Acre Wood
, the authorized sequel of Winnie-the-Pooh
.
Burgess also designs greeting card
s and is a computer programmer. Additionally, Burgess has colored and adapted the newer editions of various classic children's books that were drawn by the late E. H. Shepard
and Peggy Fortnum
.
on 26 April 1957 to John Frederick Orchard Burgess and Mona Goswell. He was the third child among his four siblings. He attended boarding school at Christ's Hospital
in Sussex, England from 1968-74 in the Middleton B house
.
In 1975, Burgess began studying at the Slade School of Fine Art
of the University College London
. Graduating from there with a B.A.
in Fine Art
in 1979, he began working as a freelance author and illustrator of children's books, magazines and greetings cards (of which he has designed over 500). He also briefly worked at the London Zoo
as well as in a library in Cambridge
.
The first book Burgess illustrated is Martin Waddell
Harriet and the Crocodiles, published in 1983.
He currently lives in Taunton, Somerset and is married to Malawi
-born artist Rosemary Benson, who is his senior by 9 years and who also attended the Slade School of Art from 1977 to 1979.
Burgess also illustrated Return to the Hundred Acre Wood
in the style of E. H. Shepard
, whose work he admired. When speaking of his work on that book, Burgess said:
) writing, "The author Mark Burgess has created a wonderful world for children here in this book, and the extra dash of Christmas magic just makes an already lovely story all the more charming."
Burgess' illustration of Return to the Hundred Acre Wood in particular received good reviews in The Sunday Times
as well as in Fantasy Book Review and Kidsreads.com. In The Times, Ann Thwaite
wrote, "With the new book, Burgess seems indispensable." Jana Siciliano of Kidsreads.com
, wrote:
However, Susan Perren, children's book columnist of The Globe and Mail
, had reservations on the drawings found in Return to the Hundred Acre Wood. Perren wrote, "This bad-tempered donkey might say, too, that Mark Burgess, as good an illustrator as he might be, is no Ernest Shepherd, and anyway, where are all those lovely line drawings we enjoyed so much in the original?"
Children's literature
Children's literature is for readers and listeners up to about age twelve; it is often defined in four different ways: books written by children, books written for children, books chosen by children, or books chosen for children. It is often illustrated. The term is used in senses which sometimes...
. He has illustrated books by Tony Bradman
Tony Bradman
Tony Bradman is an English author of children's books, best known for the Dilly the Dinosaur series. He is the author of over 50 books for young people published by multiple houses including Alfred A. Knopf, Methuen Publishing, Puffin Books, and HarperCollins.Bradman earned an M.A...
and Martin Waddell
Martin Waddell
Martin Waddell is a prolific, award winning children's author. He has lived most of his life in Newcastle, County Down and is most famous for his engaging Big Bear, Little Bear and Little Dracula series....
. Among his most recent assignments, he illustrated Return to the Hundred Acre Wood
Return to the Hundred Acre Wood
Return to the Hundred Acre Wood is a Winnie-the-Pooh novel published on 5 October 2009. Written by David Benedictus and illustrated by Mark Burgess, it was the first such book since 1928 and introduced the character Lottie the Otter....
, the authorized sequel of Winnie-the-Pooh
Winnie-the-Pooh
Winnie-the-Pooh, also called Pooh Bear, is a fictional anthropomorphic bear created by A. A. Milne. The first collection of stories about the character was the book Winnie-the-Pooh , and this was followed by The House at Pooh Corner...
.
Burgess also designs greeting card
Greeting card
A greeting card is an illustrated, folded card featuring an expression of friendship or other sentiment. Although greeting cards are usually given on special occasions such as birthdays, Christmas or other holidays, they are also sent to convey thanks or express other feeling. Greeting cards,...
s and is a computer programmer. Additionally, Burgess has colored and adapted the newer editions of various classic children's books that were drawn by the late E. H. Shepard
E. H. Shepard
Ernest Howard Shepard was an English artist and book illustrator. He was known especially for his human-like animals in illustrations for The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame and Winnie-the-Pooh by A. A. Milne....
and Peggy Fortnum
Peggy Fortnum
Peggy Fortnum, born Margaret Emily Noel Fortnum is an English illustrator. She was born in Harrow, Middlesex. She worked as an art teacher, painter, and textile designer before becoming a full-time book illustrator. She has illustrated nearly sixty-five books to date. Fortnum resides in Essex,...
.
Life
Mark Simon Burgess was born in ChislehurstChislehurst
Chislehurst is a suburban district in south-east London, England, and an electoral ward of the London Borough of Bromley. It is south-east of Charing Cross.-Toponymy:...
on 26 April 1957 to John Frederick Orchard Burgess and Mona Goswell. He was the third child among his four siblings. He attended boarding school at Christ's Hospital
Christ's Hospital
Christ's Hospital is an English coeducational independent day and boarding school with Royal Charter located in the Sussex countryside just south of Horsham in Horsham District, West Sussex, England...
in Sussex, England from 1968-74 in the Middleton B house
House system
The house system is a traditional feature of British schools, and schools in the Commonwealth. Historically, it was associated with established public schools, where a 'house' refers to a boarding house or dormitory of a boarding school...
.
In 1975, Burgess began studying at the Slade School of Fine Art
Slade School of Fine Art
The Slade School of Fine Art is a world-renownedart school in London, United Kingdom, and a department of University College London...
of the University College London
University College London
University College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom and the oldest and largest constituent college of the federal University of London...
. Graduating from there with a B.A.
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
in Fine Art
Fine art
Fine art or the fine arts encompass art forms developed primarily for aesthetics and/or concept rather than practical application. Art is often a synonym for fine art, as employed in the term "art gallery"....
in 1979, he began working as a freelance author and illustrator of children's books, magazines and greetings cards (of which he has designed over 500). He also briefly worked at the London Zoo
London Zoo
London Zoo is the world's oldest scientific zoo. It was opened in London on 27 April 1828, and was originally intended to be used as a collection for scientific study. It was eventually opened to the public in 1847...
as well as in a library in Cambridge
Cambridge
The city of Cambridge is a university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It lies in East Anglia about north of London. Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology centre known as Silicon Fen – a play on Silicon Valley and the fens surrounding the...
.
The first book Burgess illustrated is Martin Waddell
Martin Waddell
Martin Waddell is a prolific, award winning children's author. He has lived most of his life in Newcastle, County Down and is most famous for his engaging Big Bear, Little Bear and Little Dracula series....
Harriet and the Crocodiles, published in 1983.
He currently lives in Taunton, Somerset and is married to Malawi
Malawi
The Republic of Malawi is a landlocked country in southeast Africa that was formerly known as Nyasaland. It is bordered by Zambia to the northwest, Tanzania to the northeast, and Mozambique on the east, south and west. The country is separated from Tanzania and Mozambique by Lake Malawi. Its size...
-born artist Rosemary Benson, who is his senior by 9 years and who also attended the Slade School of Art from 1977 to 1979.
Style
While Burgess has written and illustrated various books in his own style, his ability to reproduce the style of other (deceased) artists has been noted on more than one occasion. For example, the book Dogs' Night, by Meredith Hooper, begun with Allan Curless as the illustrator. However, since Curless died before its completion, Burgess finished the job such "that most readers would be hard-pressed to identify which artist did which pictures", according to Lauren P. Gattilia for Education World.Burgess also illustrated Return to the Hundred Acre Wood
Return to the Hundred Acre Wood
Return to the Hundred Acre Wood is a Winnie-the-Pooh novel published on 5 October 2009. Written by David Benedictus and illustrated by Mark Burgess, it was the first such book since 1928 and introduced the character Lottie the Otter....
in the style of E. H. Shepard
E. H. Shepard
Ernest Howard Shepard was an English artist and book illustrator. He was known especially for his human-like animals in illustrations for The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame and Winnie-the-Pooh by A. A. Milne....
, whose work he admired. When speaking of his work on that book, Burgess said:
As a writer
Chloe Spooner from The Bookbag praised Burgess' Where Teddy Bears Come From (illustrated by Russell AytoRussell Ayto
Richard Ayto is an award-winning children's book illustrator and author. He was born in Chichester in 1960 and grew up in Kidlington, Oxfordshire. After school he worked in the Histopathology Department of the John Radcliffe Hospital before studying at Oxford Polytechnic and Exeter College, Exeter...
) writing, "The author Mark Burgess has created a wonderful world for children here in this book, and the extra dash of Christmas magic just makes an already lovely story all the more charming."
As an illustrator
Burgess shared a 2002 Blue Hen Book Award in the Picture Book Winner category for his and Allan Curless' illustrations in Dogs' Night.Burgess' illustration of Return to the Hundred Acre Wood in particular received good reviews in The Sunday Times
The Sunday Times
The Sunday Times is a British Sunday newspaper.The Sunday Times may also refer to:*The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times *The Sunday Times...
as well as in Fantasy Book Review and Kidsreads.com. In The Times, Ann Thwaite
Ann Thwaite
Ann Thwaite has written five major biographies. "AA Milne: His Life" was the Whitbread Biography of the Year, 1990. "Edmund Gosse: A Literary Landscape" was described by John Carey as "magnificent - one of the finest literary biographies of our time"...
wrote, "With the new book, Burgess seems indispensable." Jana Siciliano of Kidsreads.com
Kidsreads.com
KidsReads.com is a website, designed for children aged 6-12, containing information about children's books and authors, and some related games. The website was founded in 1996 by Carol Fitsgerald. As of 2009, Kidsreads.com had a following of over 350,000 readers each month. Its mascot is a...
, wrote:
However, Susan Perren, children's book columnist of The Globe and Mail
The Globe and Mail
The Globe and Mail is a nationally distributed Canadian newspaper, based in Toronto and printed in six cities across the country. With a weekly readership of approximately 1 million, it is Canada's largest-circulation national newspaper and second-largest daily newspaper after the Toronto Star...
, had reservations on the drawings found in Return to the Hundred Acre Wood. Perren wrote, "This bad-tempered donkey might say, too, that Mark Burgess, as good an illustrator as he might be, is no Ernest Shepherd, and anyway, where are all those lovely line drawings we enjoyed so much in the original?"