Wreck of the Zephyr Van Allsburg Signed 1983
$33.00
📖 The Wreck of the Zephyr — A Boy, a Boat, and the Wind That Made Boats Fly
Chris van Allsburg’s atmospheric picture book about a young sailor who discovers a mysterious wind that lifts boats into the sky.
QUICK FACTS
- Author/Illustrator: Chris van Allsburg (b. 1949), Caldecott Medal winner
- Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston
- Year: 1983 (2nd printing)
- Format: Hardcover in dust jacket
- ISBN: 0-395-33075-0
- Condition: Very Good / DJ Very Good — full report below
THE STORY
A boy wants to be the greatest sailor in the world, and an old fisherman offers to teach him. What the boy learns is not ordinary seamanship — there is a special wind, invisible to most, that can lift a boat clean out of the water and send it soaring through the air. When the boy’s ambition gets the better of him, the Zephyr is wrecked on a rocky shore. Van Allsburg’s text is spare and haunting, and the story carries the kind of quiet mystery that rewards rereading at every age.
THE ILLUSTRATIONS
Van Allsburg’s paintings are the heart of this book. The cover shows the Zephyr — a small cream-hulled sailboat with pale yellow sails — pitching through emerald-green waves under a stormy sky streaked with pink and orange. Interior spreads range from dramatic storm scenes with dark moody skies to luminous sunset passages where golden light catches the sails. A standout illustration shows the Zephyr from below at night, hull silhouetted against a deep blue sky scattered with stars, as it rises out of the water. The final image of sailboats silhouetted against a warm amber harbor at dusk closes the story on a note of quiet wonder. The art style combines realism with a painterly, almost dreamlike quality — characteristic of Van Allsburg’s best work.
THIS COPY
Second printing, Houghton Mifflin, 1983 (ISBN 0-395-33075-0, number line 10–2). Decorated maroon cloth boards with gold-embossed sailing ship design. Original dust jacket present with light edge wear and one small crease on the lower front edge. This copy comes from the personal library of Nancy Willard (1936–2017), the Newbery Award-winning children’s author of A Visit to William Blake’s Inn, with her signature (“Mary Willard” in red ink on the front endpaper). Willard taught at Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, New York.
WHY IT MATTERS
- Chris van Allsburg won the Caldecott Medal for Jumanji (1982) and The Polar Express (1986), and received Caldecott Honors for four other titles — one of the most decorated picture book creators of the 20th century
- The Wreck of the Zephyr (1983) sits at the creative peak of his early period, alongside Jumanji and Ben’s Dream
- Nancy Willard’s ownership adds literary provenance — she was a poet, novelist, and children’s writer who won the 1982 Newbery Medal, the same year Van Allsburg won his first Caldecott
- Second printing with original dust jacket in very good condition
FREQUENTLY ASKED
What edition is this? Second printing, Houghton Mifflin, 1983. Number line 10–2. ISBN 0-395-33075-0.
What condition is it in? Very Good overall, dust jacket Very Good — clean boards, bright pages, DJ with light edge wear and one small crease. Protected in archival sleeve.
Is it signed? Signed “Mary Willard” in red ink on the front endpaper — this is Nancy Willard’s personal copy from her library at Vassar College.
FOR COLLECTORS
A signed Van Allsburg is uncommon, and one with documented provenance from a fellow Newbery winner adds a layer of literary history. The maroon cloth boards with gold embossing, the complete dust jacket, and Nancy Willard’s signature make this a distinctive copy for any children’s literature collection.
#### **Condition Report**
* **Overall Grade:** Very Good / Dust Jacket: Very Good
* **Cover and Spine:** Maroon cloth boards with gold-embossed ship design. Clean and bright, minor shelf wear at spine ends. Crisp board corners.
* **Dust Jacket:** Original jacket complete with original price on front flap. Light edge wear, small crease on lower front edge. Not price-clipped. Now protected in removable archival sleeve.
* **Text Block and Pages:** Pages bright, clean, and free of marks. Binding tight and square.
* **Signature:** “Mary Willard” in red ink on front endpaper (Nancy Willard’s personal copy from her Vassar College library).
#### **Book Details**
* **Author/Illustrator:** Chris van Allsburg
* **Publisher:** Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston
* **Year:** 1983 (2nd printing)
* **Binding:** Hardcover in dust jacket
* **ISBN:** 0-395-33075-0
Will ship promptly, carefully packaged. Will arrive in a removable archival sleeve.
HFB-SEO-v1: 2026-07-02
1 in stock
Additional information
| Weight | 32 oz |
|---|---|
| Dimensions | 12 × 9 × 3 in |
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