"The Stranger" By: Chris Van Allsburg

After reading some of Chris Van Allsburg's books I've realized that his stories are intriguing because they mix the real world with fantasy. He also adds some sort of twist that leaves the reader thinking after the book is finished. I thought this book, in particular, was really interesting. It's about a farmer, Mr. Bailey, who accidentally hits a man with his car. After knocking this stranger over he takes him back to his house. The man doesn't speak. This worries Mr. Bailey so he calls a doctor over to inspect the man, and the doctor claims the stranger has lost his memory. Although the stranger doesn't speak he stays with the family until the beginning of autumn. By this point the stranger has become a part of the family. The stranger is fascinated by nature, and seems to have a special connection with it. He can approach rabbits without them running away, and when he notices the leaves on the Bailey's farm haven't changed he blows on a leaf until it turns from green to orange.
I thought this book was interesting becuase as a reader I wanted to peg who this stranger was. I was curious if he an ordinary man, if he had magic powers, or if he was symbolic of mother nature. The book doesn't explain all the details about the stranger, those pieces are left for the reader to fill in. This is what I love about Chris Van Allsburg's books. He gives the reader something to think about. As much as I want to know all the answers at the end of this book it was up to my imagination to fill in the rest.
Like his other books Van Allsburg's illustrations are beautiful. These pictures are filled with color, and depict the changing seasons beautifully. The end pages are a burnt orange, which is interesting because the stranger changes the leaf from green to orange near the end of the book. There is also a die stamp of leaves on the front of the book. The stamp is a gold orange. The book incorporates the autumn leaves in many different ways.
This book puts a fun new twist to the changing seasons, and it would be a fun one to read as the seasons change from summer to autumn.