I am an instant fan of late 19th century illustrator Peter Newell whose work was funny, explosive, and full of hilarious details that made my husband exclaim, "He must have been on drugs." Hahaha...well, not sure about that last bit, but he is wonderful. Above is one of Alice in Wonderland illustrations -- fighting hedgehogs!
And here is a perfect example in one his children's books simply called "The Rocket" -- which we never actually see -- only the fiery tail, as it shoots from the basement through the floors of different rooms of what must be a multi-floored house. And in each room, the rocket has managed to explode through the most central activity in the room, until captured at last in an ice cream maker. You can see more of it at BibliOdyssey, but here are a few of my favorite images:
An exploding typewriter -- yes, I can see that, but the walrus taxidermy was really inspired madness!
Midori Snyder is the author of nine books for children and adults, published in English, French, Dutch, and Italian. She won the Mythopoeic Award for The Innamorati, a novel inspired by early Roman myth and the Italian "Commedia dell'Arte" tradition....
