I Have Hague Memories ... Gathered From the Niche

 

"Michael Hague (born September 8, 1948) is an American illustrator, primarily of children's fantasy books. Among the books he has illustrated classics such as The Wind in the Willows, The Wizard of Oz, The Hobbit and the stories of Hans Christian Andersen. He is known for the intricate and realistic detail he brings to his work, and the rich colors he chooses.

"Hague trained at the Art Center College of Design in Los Angeles. He lists his influences as the comics series Prince Valiant and the works of Disney, Japanese printmakers Hiroshige and Hokusai, and turn of the 20th century illustrators Arthur Rackham, W. Heath Robinson, N. C. Wyeth and Howard Pyle." - Wikipedia.

He's also illustrated an armload of other books. But the weird little thing I'll always associate him with is this line of plushies done in 1980, available (but not bought) at our little local toy store Yellow Brick Road, based on his illustrations for The Wind in the Willows.

Stuff&Junk: Old Calendars

 

J. R. R. Tolkien: In a Hole in the Ground There Lived ...

The Hobbit: An Illustrated Edition, With Text by J. R. R. Tolkien and Illustrations from the Film by Arthur Rankin, Jr. and Jules Bass. (1977)

One of my inaugurating purchases from the Science Fiction Book Club (four books for a penny plus shipping), probably from late 1978. I wrote my name and phone number in it, because I had to take it to school to show off. Even through all these years I’ve managed to preserve the plastic see-through cover with Smaug on it; the occasional copies I’ve seen in used bookstores are inevitably missing it. It is somewhat brittle. John used to have (still does maybe) a smaller, softcover copy. At the time, the next best thing to having the animated special. Full of cell illustration, production art, and had two foldouts: The Elves capture the Dwarves and The Battle of Five Armies.

Ranking: Bass … I mean, Essential.

File Code: Fantasy. Novel. Animation. Hardback.

The Annotated Hobbit, by J. R. R. Tolkien. Annotated by Douglas A. Anderson. (1988)

“The definitive edition of this beloved children's classic, featuring a wealth of accompanying illustrations and notes which take the reader further into both the story, and the tale of how it was written. … As with all classics, repeated readings continue to bring new detail and perspectives to the reader's mind, and Tolkien's Middle-earth is a vast mine of treasures and knowledge, its roots delving deep into folklore, mythology and language. The Hobbit is, therefore, an ideal book for annotation: as well as offering a marvellous and entrancing story, it introduces the reader to the richly imagined world of Middle-earth, a world more fully and complexly realised in The Lord of the Rings and The Silmarillion. Douglas Anderson's annotations make fascinating reading. Additionally, many of Tolkien's own illustrations embellish the text, and numerous illustrations from foreign editions exhibit an extraordinary range of visual interpretation. In an appendix there are details of the revisions made by Tolkien at various times to the published text, which provide an uncommon and privileged glimpse into the special concerns of an exceptional and painstaking writer.” – Amazon. Includes personal photos and the postcard of ‘The Mountain Spirit’ that Tolkien labeled ‘Origin of Gandalf’. I love a fine annotated edition!

Ranking: Essential.

File Code: Annotated. Fantasy. Novel. Hardback.

The Hobbit, by J. R. R. Tolkien. Illustrated by Michael Hague. (1984)

I had so many other books illustrated by Hague, of course I had to get this one too, especially since it was ‘The Hobbit’. I can’t say I’m especially fond of his Bilbo, though; he looks like he’s five years old and not quite heavy enough. Hague later went on to do illustrations for Easton Press editions of The Lord of the Rings; his style, more suited for juveniles, was not the best fit there, although it brings a good Rackham-esque quality here. I remember when I bought this at Hastings, I was able to bargain for a discount because the cover was damaged.

Ranking: Essential.

File Code: Fantasy. Novel. Hardback. Illustrated.

The Annotated Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien: Revised and Expanded Edition. Annotated by Douglas A Anderson. (2002)

“The Annotated Hobbit: Revised and Expanded Edition is a new edition of The Annotated Hobbit (1988). This new edition includes several hard-to-find poems by J.R.R. Tolkien:

• "Goblin Feet"
• "Enigmata Saxonica Nuper Inventa Duo"
• "Iúmonna Gold Galdre Bewunden"
• "Progress in Bimble Town"
• "The Root of the Boot"
• "The Dragon's Visit"
• "Elvish Song in Rivendell" (previously unpublished)
• "Glip" (previously unpublished)
• "The Quest of Erebor"

For readers throughout the world, The Hobbit serves as an introduction to the enchanting world of Middle-earth, home of elves, wizards, dwarves, goblins, dragons, orcs and a host of other creatures depicted in The Lord of the Rings and The Silmarillion -- tales that sprang from the mind of the most beloved author of all time, J.R.R. Tolkien. Newly expanded and completely redesigned, Douglas A. Anderson's The Annotated Hobbit is the definitive explication of the sources, characters, places, and things of J.R.R. Tolkien's timeless classic. Integrated with Anderson's notes and placed alongside the fully restored and corrected text of the original story are more than 150 illustrations showing visual interpretations of The Hobbit specific to many of the cultures that have come to know and love Tolkien's Middle-earth. Tolkien's original line drawings, maps and color paintings are also included, making this the most lavishly informative edition of The Hobbit available. The Annotated Hobbit shows how Tolkien worked as a writer, what his influences and interests were, and how these relate to the invented world of Middle-earth. It gives a valuable overview of Tolkien's life and the publishing history of The Hobbit and explains how every feature of The Hobbit fits within the rest of Tolkien's invented world. Here we learn how Gollum's character was revised to accommodate the true nature of the One Ring, and we can read the full text of The Quest of Erebor, Gandalf's explanation of how he came to send Bilbo Baggins on his journey with the dwarves. Anderson also makes meaningful and often surprising connections to our own world and literary history -- from Beowulf to The Marvellous Land of Snergs, from the Brothers Grimm to C. S. Lewis.” – From the Publisher [quoted on Tolkien Gateway]. Expanded – yet physically smaller than the original, which makes the pictures a little harder to appreciate.

Ranking: Essential.

File Code: Fantasy. Novel. Annotated. Hardback.

The Hobbit, by J. R. R. Tolkien. (2007)

This edition was produced to go along with “The History of The Hobbit” and has all the line and color drawings by Tolkien, and the cover is reproduced exactly to Tolkien’s own original design and desires.

Ranking: Essential.

File Code: Fantasy. Novel. Hardback.

The Hobbit, by J. R. R. Tolkien. Illustrated by Jemima Catlin. (2013)

“The first new illustrated edition of J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit since Alan Lee’s iconic illustrations brought the much-loved children’s tale to life in 1997. The Hobbit, illustrated by Jemima Catlin, published in both hardback and a deluxe foiled slipcase edition, contains 150 brand new colour illustrations. Jemima’s work is quirky and whimsical, taking inspiration from classic children’s book illustrators like E.H. Shephard’s Winnie the Pooh and Tove Jansson’s Moomins, along with Japanese anime from Studio Ghibli such as Howl’s Moving Castle and Spirited Away.” – tolkienlibrary.com. Not, in my opinion, all that good, but it’s The Hobbit, dammit, and somebody already had it (was it Kenny? Or Morgandy?) and Hobbit envy DEMANDED I have it. I’M the Tolkien guy!

Ranking: Essential.

File Code: Fantasy. Novel. Illustrated. Hardback.

The Hobbit, by J. R. R. Tolkien. (Russian 2005)

“I do not read Russian; I do not speak Russian. So why would I buy (at a rather steep price, at that) a book almost completely in Russian? Why, because it's an edition of The Hobbit with original illustrations, both painted and sketched, of course! I first discovered the existence of this volume on a site called Babel Hobbits (fortuitous name!), a place dedicated to foreign editions of Tolkien. Here I found out not only the date of publication (2005) and the name of the illustrator (Denis Gordeev), but also reproductions (via photographs, not scans) of all the color illustrations. These were detailed enough and obscure enough, due to the book not laying completely flat, to excite my admiration. I could see that here were pictures that were definitely Tolkienian, but untouched by most Western conceptions: a vision characteristically Russian. I conceived the compulsion to own this book. First, I had to make sure I got the right Russian Hobbit. There have been at least several different editions over the years, and some have been re-released in the last decade or so. Apparently there are Tolkien enthusiasts over there as rabid as any in the world. I finally tracked down what I made sure was the correct one on eBay; the seller was actually in Russia, and the shipping was almost half again the cost of the book. Fortunately I was flush at the time with my tax return, so I dropped almost ninety dollars on a book that not only had I read many times before, but at the same time couldn't read at all. And I sat down to wait. It takes a long damn time for a package to come from Russia. I waited almost three months. During that time I constantly fretted; after the second month I checked the mailbox obsessively, and even began to wonder if maybe I had been suckered. What the heck could I do if someone half a world away had simply taken my money and ran? I had almost decided to contact the seller (there was no tracking on the package) if only to comfort myself, when at last a wrinkled, exotic looking bundle finally turned up on the porch. My Russian Hobbit had arrived. It is a beautiful book, and a revelation in person. Not only are there the paintings displayed at Babel Hobbits, there are little pencil sketches on every page to illustrate small elements of the story, if only a pipe or a plant or a sword or a bat. A particularly good one was of Smaug's skeleton moldering on the bottom of Long Lake. Bilbo himself seems based on the body type of a real (human) dwarf; the dwarves are in contrast closer to "normal" body types, and only a little shorter than the elves and men who appear. The style of clothing, weapons, and even hair and beards are (to my eyes) in a definite traditional historic Russian mode. What I found particularly refreshing was the complete freedom from the influence of the Jackson films which has lately swamped Tolkien art.  The type of painting is what I can only describe as a clear "Northern" method, as opposed to the misty "Celtic" style of, say, Alan Lee; it is realistic in depiction and not stylized like other Russian illustrations, especially those clearly aimed at younger readers. Two elements I found interesting were the absence of quotation marks and that the table of contents was placed in the back of the book; I don't know, but it wouldn't surprise me, if this is just true of all Russian books. And so it joins my Tolkien books as certainly the most exotic curiosity in my collection. Its interesting format and unique visual interpretation helps me to once more look at an old favorite in a new way. As a lover of both Middle-earth and book illustration, I am very pleased indeed.” – Power of Babel, (2015).

Ranking: Essential.

File Code: Fantasy. Novel. Russian. Hardback.

The Hobbit, or There and Back Again, by J. R. R. Tolkien; Adapted by Charles Dixon, Illustrated by David Wenzel. A Graphic Novel in Three Parts, Part I (1998), Part II (1999), Part III (1999). Eclipse Books.

“In 1989 The Hobbit was adapted in a three issue comic book series, published by Eclipse Comics. The story was adapted from the original by Chuck Dixon, and illustrated by David T. Wenzel. Even as a young boy David Wenzel, of Durham, knew he wanted to be an artist. When he went to Hartford Art School and read The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien, he knew he wanted to be an illustrator. The Hobbit has been a big part of his life ever since. "Back then, there were no illustrations for the book," he said, "so I started illustrating it because I thought it needed drawings. My senior year I had a show of paintings that I did for The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings."
His drawings at a Simsbury gallery drew the attention of a publisher, who asked him to redo the illustrations for Middle Earth, the World of Tolkien Illustrated. After freelancing for Marvel Comics, he and his friend, Rob Walsh, who was versed in Nordic mythology, decided to work together on a book he had conceived. "The premise," Wenzel said, "was to make one of Tolkien’s character races seem to exist in reality. We found out that there were incidences where dwarfs were integral to moments in history. Some of the hieroglyphics in ancient Egypt show dwarfs making jewelry. Their small hands allowed them to make intricate designs." When a college friend learned that the publisher he was working for was doing a graphic novel version of The Hobbit, he told them, "You gotta call David Wenzel." Wenzel illustrated the three volumes that eventually were compiled into one book.” – TolkienLibrary.com

Ranking: Essential.

File Code: Graphic Novel. Adaptation. Softcovers.

The Hobbit, by J. R. R. Tolkien.

Movie tie-in release (2012), with a photo of Bilbo (Martin Freeman) stepping out of Bag-End. Had to have it.

Ranking: Essential.

File Code: Fantasy. Novel. Softcover.

The Hobbit: A Musical. Book by Ruth Perry, Lyrics by David Rogers. (1972)

“This adaptation of ‘The Hobbit’ is authorized by Professor J. R. R. Tolkien.” When I was in 3^rd Grade in 1972, our class went to see a production of this play put on at the high school by the Drama Department under Nancy Rowley. This was my first introduction to the world of Middle-Earth, and Tolkien was still alive; he would pass away in the September of 1973. Years later when I was in the drama class myself, I got this play from her library, along with a couple of pointed dwarf-hats and Bilbo’s green bobble hat that were still in the wardrobe. I remember seeing “Thorin Was Here” painted on some of the old flats. It seemed unbearably ancient to me then, and now … it’s like the memory of the memory of a forgotten world.

Ranking: Essential.

File Code: Play. Adaptation. Softcover.

The Hobbit, by J. R. R. Tolkien. Illustrated by the Author. (1988)

Houghton Mifflin. Softcover with a dust jacket; picture by Alan Lee. Used to be Kameron’s second-hand copy, former owner’s name on the inside page.

Ranking: Essential.

File Code: Fantasy. Novel. Softcover.

J. R. R. Tolkien The Hobbit, Illustrated by John Howe. A 3-D Pop-Up Adventure. (1999)

Possibly (nay, certainly) the simplest and strangest of my Tolkien ‘books’; it’s more of an artifact. Only the fact that it’s between covers convinces me it belongs in this list.

Ranking: Keeper.

File Code: Pop-Up Book. Adaptation. Hardback.

On the Shelf

The Wind in the Willows, by Kenneth Grahame (Hardback); The Wizard of Oz, by L. Frank Baum (Hardback); The Book of Dragons, selected by Michael Hague (Hardback); The Reluctant Dragon, by Kenneth Grahame (Softcover); all Illustrated by Michael Hague.

I first started getting Hague editions in the early 80’s, with ‘Willows’; I remember at the toy store ‘Yellow Brick Road’ they had little stuffed toys of Toad and the others with Hague’s art printed on cloth as a tie-in. I like his work; it is reminiscent of a classical style, like Rackham’s. And dragons and Oz? Of course I must have them. He did an edition of “The Hobbit” too, which I’ll get to in time.

Ranking: Keepers.

File Code: Illustrated Editions. Classics.

The Adventure Time Encyclopaedia: Inhabitants, Lore, Spells, and Ancient Cryptic Warnings of the Land of Ooo circa 19.56 B. G. E. – 501 A. G. E., Compiled by His Lowness Hunson Abadeer, Lord of Evil. Translated from the Scrolls of Ooo by Martin Olson.

Another ‘fake book’, covering the period when Adventure Time was a great series, before it became too preachy and stumbled down into darkness. Man, what a ride. A guide to characters, events, and lore, with copious illustration on every page. Even its calligraphy is ever-changingly amusing.

Ranking: Essential.

File Code: Guidebook. Cartoon. Hardback.

Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency, and The Long Dark Tea-Time of the Soul, by Douglas Adams.

“Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency is a humorous detective novel by English writer Douglas Adams, first published in 1987. It is described by the author on its cover as a "thumping good detective-ghost-horror-who dunnit-time travel-romantic-musical-comedy-epic". The book was followed by a sequel, The Long Dark Tea-Time of the Soul. The only recurring major characters are the eponymous Dirk Gently, his secretary Janice Pearce and Sergeant Gilks. Adams also began work on another novel, The Salmon of Doubt, with the intention of publishing it as the third book in the series, but died before completing it.” – Wikipedia. I kept these novels after abandoning the Hitchhiker’s series; they are an ace better, or at least less annoying. Has been made into a questionable BBC television show.

Ranking: Keepers.

File Code: Fantasy. Novel. Hardbacks.

The Deeper Meaning of Liff, by Douglas Adams and John Lloyd.

Perhaps the best and funniest of all Adams’ books, it is “a dictionary of things that there aren't any words for yet". Rather than inventing new words, Adams and Lloyd picked a number of existing place-names and assigned interesting meanings to them, meanings that can be regarded as on the verge of social existence and ready to become recognisable entities. All the words listed are toponyms and describe common feelings and objects for which there is no current English word. Examples are Shoeburyness ("The vague uncomfortable feeling you get when sitting on a seat that is still warm from somebody else's bottom") and Plymouth ("To relate an amusing story to someone without remembering that it was they who told it to you in the first place"). The book cover usually bears the tagline "This book will change your life", either as part of its cover or as an adhesive label. Liff (a village near Dundee in Scotland) is then defined in the book as "A book, the contents of which are totally belied by its cover. For instance, any book the dust jacket of which bears the words, 'This book will change your life'." – Wikipedia. An expanded edition of “The Meaning of Liff.”

Ranking: Keeper.

File Code: Humor. Parodic Dictionary. Hardback.

Letters, by Sylvia Townsend Warner. Edited by William Maxwell.

The two works of Warner that I have (Kingdoms of Elfin and a biography of T. H. White) are so good that when I saw this at a San Marcos Library sale, I had to have it. There is something very personal about reading an author’s letters, especially from such as a good writer as Warner, as she writes about her life as it was lived. Of special intensity for me was her letter on page 226, when she talks about visiting White’s house on Aldernay, just four months after his death, and seeing all his personal items still sitting around, ‘defenceless as a corpse’. She said she could feel his presence ‘morose, suspicious, intensely watchful, and determined to despair,’ as imminent a haunt as she had ever experienced in her life. Most of the letters of course, are about her life, her writing, and her love Valentine, all told in the most perceptive and lucid prose that is almost poetry, supple without being high-flown.

Ranking: Essential.

File Code: Letters. Biography. Hardback.

A Treasury of the Familiar Volume I, Edited by Ralph L. Woods.

I found this book at a local library sale, and was surprised to find it had belonged to Malcolm Bonorden, the rather scary 6^th grade teacher at McQueeney, the only male teacher at school. I was looking through this copy (once Malcolm Bonorden's, bought at a library sale). The man was 57, dude; in a month I'll be as old as Malcolm Bonorden ever was. The man always seemed writhen to me, but then I was only 8 or 9. I kind of foolishly dreaded being in his class, not being a manly little boy, then Briesemeister opened up and saved me from ever having to face that. Looking at his book (with pages turned down at "The Shooting of Dan McGrew" and "Little Orphant Annie" and especially "The Fool's Prayer" - which I always liked since I was a freshman in high school - gave me a strange new insight into his character. The book itself is an amazing treasury of what was popular in 1942, recitation pieces and famous addresses and poetry and documents like the Declaration of Independence … if you want to put your head into a certain historical American state of mind, browse this book.

Ranking: Essential.

File Code: Treasury. Hardback.

Just So

The King of Ireland’s Son, by Padraic Colum. Illustrations by Willy Pogany.

“The King of Ireland's Son is a children's novel published in Ireland in 1916 written by Padraic Colum, and illustrated by Willy Pogany. It is the story of the eldest of the King of Ireland's sons, and his adventures winning and then finding Fedelma, the Enchanter's Daughter, who after being won is kidnapped from him by the King of the Land of Mist. It is solidly based in Irish folklore, itself being originally a folktale.” – Wikipedia. Another ex-library book, and another pairing of Colum and Pogany. And another San Antonio library sale find. [As such, this is not my cover.] For all that is going for it, I can’t say I’ve read it as yet.

Ranking: Keeper.

File Code: Fantasy. Novel. Hardback.

Celtic Fairy Tales, by Joseph Jacobs, Illustrations by John D. Batten.

Ex-library book, one in the series of Jacob’s fairy tale collections. Irish, Scottish, and Welsh stories, with great old pictures that were re-run by the likes of Peter Haining in their great scrapbooks of the 70’s. [Also not my cover.]

Ranking: Keeper.

File Code: Fairy Tales. Hardback.

Hubble’s Bubble, by Elaine Horseman. Illustrations by John Sergeant.

“Hubble's Bubble, by Elaine Horseman, illustrated by John Sergeant (W. W. Norton & Company, Inc., 1964). This book was actually in our middle school library, and I was pretty interested in it, but I could never check it out. This is because my last name is Babel, and anything with the word bubble or bobble in it was grist for the mocker's mills (and if you think no-one would have noticed me getting this book, you have forgotten how intensely public life in middle school is). Instead, I browsed it on the shelves, and was interested in the general set-up: five British children have a magical summer adventure in a cathedral court. The character I liked was Alaric Hubble, aged 12, a science enthusiast who buys an old book (from a disappearing shop, no less!) of what he thinks are chemistry experiments, but which turns out to be full of magical recipes. A lab in a secret room, animal transformations, and flying adventures ensue, along with the intrigue of keeping the adults from finding out. I am still in the process of reading this, so forbear to give a final opinion, but it is certainly redolent of period airs, from John Sergeant's line drawings to the advertisement for P. L. Travers "new" book, The Fox at the Manger, on the back.” -Power of Babel. I finished this secondhand library book and enjoyed it.

Ranking: Essential Nostalgia.

File Code: Fantasy. Children’s Novel. Hardback.

The King of the Golden River, by John Ruskin. Illustrated by Fritz Kredel.

A 1946 book that still has its jacket. Ruskin’s famous fairy tale and illustrated by the same artist who did our old copy of Grimm’s Fairy Tales. Bought at Yesterday’s Warehouse.

Ranking: Keeper.

File Code: Fairy Tale. Hardback.

Rhymes and Verses: Collected Poems for Young People, by Walter de la Mare. With Drawings by Elinore Blaisdell.

Contains such great poems as ‘Dame Hickory’, ‘Some One’, ‘John Mouldy’, ‘I Saw Three Witches’, ‘The Ride-by-Nights’, ‘The Hare’, and many others, de la Mare’s poetry is always limpid, full of nature and mystery and an incantatory power. I bought this in the college bookstore.

Ranking: Essential.

File Code: Poetry. Anthology. Softcover.

Just So Stories, by Rudyard Kipling. Illustrated by the Author.

I got this copy years ago at Hastings, having already read it in the McQueeney library and seen some of the stories in tons of collections and textbooks. “Kipling began working on the book by telling the first three chapters as bedtime stories to his daughter Josephine. These had to be told "just so" (exactly in the words she was used to) or she would complain. The stories describe how one animal or another acquired its most distinctive features, such as how the leopard got his spots. For the book, Kipling illustrated the stories himself.” – Wikipedia.

Ranking: Essential.

File Code: Fantasy. Children’s Book. Hardback.

The Story of Doctor Dolittle, by Hugh Lofting. Illustrated by Michael Hague.

With some slight revisions to remove certain elements deemed racially insensitive. Perhaps I would prefer the original version with Hugh Lofting’s illustrations, but there it is; Michael Hague is a great illustrator, and I wanted his art. Dolittle is of course a classic work, and besides the Rex Harrison movie (good, but wearisomely long), I enjoyed the 1970 Depatie-Freleng cartoon series. A sailing ship, talking to animals, doctor bags and top-hats – a fine childhood brew!

Ranking: A compromised classic, but Essential.

File Code: Children’s Fantasy. Adventure. Hardback.