Module 1: The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore

Image retrieved from simonandschuster.com

Book Summary: Mr. Morris Lessmore loved to read. He wrote a book about his life as it was happening until one day he blew away and the words got scattered. He saw a lady being pulled by flying books, and when Morris's book wouldn't fly, she sent him a book that led him to building where books lived. Morris ended up spending his life with the books, reading them, caring for them, and sharing them with others. He continued to write his own story, and when he grew old, the books took care of him until he decided it was time to go. The books flew him away, and he turned young again. He left his own book behind, and a little girl wandered into the book building. Morris's book flew up to her, and she began to read. The story implies that the cycle begins again. 

APA Reference:

Joyce, W. (2012). The fantastic flying books of Mr. Morris Lessmore. New York: Atheneum 

     Books for Young Readers.

Impressions: I absolutely loved this book. What struck me first about it were the illustrations. They are so vivid, imaginative, and unlike anything I had ever seen. The use of black and white transitioning to color when Morris gets taken away by the books really enhanced the story. I also loved the idea of a man who loved words and books literally being taken on a fantastic adventure by books. I thought it was interesting that the story never says Morris is taken to a library, just a home for books, and also that even though he loves reading and living with the books, he isn't a recluse. He shares his love with the world. The ending plays to the reader's emotions; even though Morris's life is over, his legacy continues through another (and we can assume the lady who first gave him the flying book preceded him at the books' home). Overall, I thought it was a touching, inventive story without being overdone. I would be excited to see the short film it is based on. 

Professional Review:

"Grades 1-3. First it was an Academy Award–winning animated short. Then it was an intuitively interactive iPad story app. And now it’s a regular old book, which is fitting given that the story is all about the lasting power of books to transport and nourish the soul. Our hero is a bibliophile modeled after legendary children’s-literature advocate William Morris (in spirit) and Buster Keaton (in looks), whose gray-colored world is colorized when he sees a woman fly past, pulled by 'a festive squadron of flying books.' One such book leads him to take custodianship of a house full of rambunctious stories. As the years pass, he writes one of his own, which in turn inspires a young girl after he is gone. The message-heavy narrative is lifted by Joyce’s superb artwork, presenting nostalgic, picket-fence scenes with a modeled, dimensional feel built on the animation but given a lustrous polish for the printed page. Perhaps most fascinating, the movie, app, and book taken together present an entirely kid-friendly opportunity to talk about the interplay between content and format. HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: The movie and app iterations of this work have attracted gobs of acclaim and attention for the book to capitalize on."

Chipman, I. (2012). The fantastic flying books of Mr. Morris Lessmore [Review of the book

The fantastic flying books of Mr. Morris Lessmore, by W. Joyce]. Booklist, 108(21), 70.

Library Use: This would be a great book to read before having kids do a project where they create a "flying book" inspired by one of their favorite books. They could create illustrations and their own summaries and/or reviews on construction paper, fold them into book shapes, and the librarian could hang them on strings from the library ceiling.