Leonard Baskin (1922–2000)

After enjoying Leonard Baskin's wonderful A Book of Dragons, written with his young son Hosie, I immediately began looking around for other children's books he had worked on, coming up with this fabulous catalogue of unusual creatures. Taken from traditional folklore, works of original fantasy, and the author's own imagination, the twenty-one beings profiled here, from The Imp of the Perverse to the Jack-o-Lantern, are all a little creepy.

Here the reader will encounter The Wicked Witch of show more the West, from L. Frank Baum's classic children's novel, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz; Ariel and Caliban from Shakespeare's The Tempest; and Oberon and Titania from his A Midsummer Night's Dream. Here too is the bridge troll from the Norwegian folktale, The Three Billy Goats Gruff; the elves from the Grimms' The Elves and the Shoemaker; and the diminutive villain of Rumpelstiltskin. The other creatures include Jack Frost, the bogeyman Bloody Bones, the Tooth Fairy, a gremlin, the Black Dog, the Little Gnome, the Witch of Dark Adventures, the Demon of Energy, Tinkerbell, the Sly Devil, the Witch of Secret Good Deeds, and the Guardian Angel. Finally, the giants that Jack killed - Cormoran, Blunderbore, Thunderbell, and Gargantua - also make an appearance.

Each creature profiled in Imps, Demons, Hobgoblins, Witches, Fairies & Elves is given a two-page spread, with text - ranging from simple sentence to complete fairy-tale - on one page, and painting on the other. Baskin's images are compelling, giving even those creatures more commonly held to be "cute" a sinister appearance. The palette is very dark here, and some of the illustrations disturbing, so I would say that this is one for those with a taste for the darker side of the supernatural. Leonard Baskin fans, naturally, will be delighted. show less

Well-known sculptor and illustrator Leonard Baskin teamed up with his young son Hosie to create this fabulous picture-book catalogue of the dragons of the world, published in 1985. Here the reader will encounter Leviathan - most fully described in the Book of Job, in the Hebrew Bible - whose eventual conflict with Behemoth will signal the end of the world. Here too is Tiamat, the Babylonian goddess slain by Marduk; the Shen Lung, a powerful Chinese dragon with the ability to control the show more weather; the monster Grendel and his terrible mother, slain by the hero Beowulf; and the birdlike dragon outwitted by the Polish King Krak, who went on to found the city of Krakow. Also included are the Babylonian dragon slain by Daniel, the Hydra, Smaug (from J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit), the Basilisk, the Laidly Worm, Fafnir, the sea dragon slain by Perseus, the Fire-Breathing dragon, Tarasque, the Dragon of Colchis, St. George's dragon, and the eight-tailed dragon. Finally, both the Fold-Up Dragon and the Manuscript Dragon also make an appearance.

Each two-page spread of The Book of Dragons features a paragraph or two about the specific dragon being profiled on one page, and a full-page color painting, done in watercolor, of the creature being discussed, on the other. Baskin's illustrations are vivid and powerful. They are not "pretty," in the manner of some fairy-tales, but they do capture the fascination of these mythological beings. Less of a history than a sampling, this picture-book is sure to please young dragon lovers, as well as fans of Leonard Baskin's artwork. show less

There are so many alphabet books but this one is delightful. There are so many unusual animals, adjectives and drawings. I kept thinking how much fun it would be to do this kind of book with a classroom of first graders.

A bit morbid for my taste, but then Baskin did do the amazing bas relief of FDR's funeral at the FDR Memorial in Washington DC, so he did put his morbidity to (opinion) good use.