I felt less of that pressure to find strong readership because I was writing The Curious Guide To Things That Aren't largely in memory of my father and in celebration of my mother. Nevertheless, finding it published and on the shelves is an exciting experience, and also a wonderful way to relive my childhood with my parents.
My mom and dad, Jim and Mary Fixx, began the work on The Curious Guide to Things That Aren’t back in 1959 or so, when, as young Oberlin College graduates and newlyweds, they conceived of its subject. My father picked away at the writing while my mother worked on a couple of preliminary illustrations. But they had a first child, followed quickly by their second – me – and the book was set aside. It was really moved to the back shelf when my younger brother and sister, twins, entered the world. With four children under the age of five, there just wasn’t much time to sit at the drafting table and illustrate or enough peace and quiet outside of the office to write the story.
My father went on to edit magazines, including serving as managing editor of McCalls, and to write professionally, producing three books of puzzles – Games for the Super-Intelligent, More Games for the Super-Intelligent and Solve It – and then four books on exercise, including The Complete Book of Running, which spent 56 weeks in the number one spot on The New York Times bestseller list.
After putting aside Things That Aren't some time in the mid-60s, my father may have never thought again about completing it. In any case it wasn’t something he ever discussed with my siblings or me. I found the draft among his papers after he passed away in 1984, but because I was 22 at the time and had just started my first job out of college, I did not have any chance to focus on it.
It was only when our own children were grown and I had retired from Chase Collegiate School as Head and decided not to accept the offers of two two additional independent school headships to become development director at The Country School that I found myself with the time to tackle the book. Things That Aren't was written late at night, on weekends and during the early morning hours, and I enjoyed the challenging writing task immensely. At times I felt like a Swiss watch maker, as I tried to find the right word, arranging jewels in just the right way in a watch. Other times, like our students sometimes, I would feel clumsy and inept, unable to find the right words to capture my thoughts.
My wife, Liza, a bookseller, suggested the book could work well as an alphabet book. My father had written seven of the chapters already, and so seven are his and 19 of them are mine.
When the first copy of the book was printed, Liza brought it home and I sat to read it. As I encountered my father's words freshly, I stopped often and thought, “Gosh, he was a good writer."
As the book was being written, I relied on my colleagues at The Country School, where I was named Head of School in 2014. With support from teachers in Grades Kindergarten-5th, I visited classrooms and talked about the subject matter with students. Not only was I trying to find out what age level and ability seem to be the sweet spot for the book, but I needed some help understanding a child's perspective with words like breath and fog and memory and gravity. I'm indebted to those colleagues for giving me class time to work with their students.
I have a number of great memories from those months. One example is when I was asking for help with clues for the word “darkness.” One of the students suggested that darkness is what blind people see all the time. I never would have come up with that on my own.
Abby Carter, the book’s illustrator, was able to incorporate one of my mother’s sketches into her brilliant illustrations. It was a total joy to work with Abby and to see the way she was able to take and enliven the manuscript with her sketches. I am in awe of her art ability and creativity.
Abby and I were classmates and friends in college at Wesleyan University. About three years ago, after I began working at The Country School, we met for lunch, and I proposed we collaborate on this book. Maybe a week later, I asked her how it was going. The whimsy and whim you see in her illustrations came out in the way she responded to that question. She essentially said that she was all excited when we talked over lunch, but when she sat down at her table to begin to draw, she realized that she was being asked to sketch, literally, things that aren't. “How do you capture air, breath, shadows, an echo, fog, and gravity in an illustration?” she asked. Of course, the book is about puzzles and riddles and the talented Abby solved that puzzle 26 times brilliantly.
My father was always fascinated by puzzles and games. He worked closely with his beloved Mensa organization, trading puzzles and brainteasers with other high intelligence people from around the world. He would enjoy the exchanges even more today, with the ease of the Internet and quick response.
My father's puzzles and games overlapped with his love of running and exercise. Studies have proven that brain activity and creativity are enhanced by physical activity and the release of dopamine and chemicals. I remember runs with my father, from when I was six years old through to 22 years old, during which he would try out the latest puzzle or word game with me. “OK, John,” my father might ask, 12 miles into a 15 mile run, "You are given three objects – a paperclip, an anvil, and 12 feet of rope. What can you do that is useful with those three objects?”
After putting aside Things That Aren't some time in the mid-60s, my father may have never thought again about completing it. In any case it wasn’t something he ever discussed with my siblings or me. I found the draft among his papers after he passed away in 1984, but because I was 22 at the time and had just started my first job out of college, I did not have any chance to focus on it.
It was only when our own children were grown and I had retired from Chase Collegiate School as Head and decided not to accept the offers of two two additional independent school headships to become development director at The Country School that I found myself with the time to tackle the book. Things That Aren't was written late at night, on weekends and during the early morning hours, and I enjoyed the challenging writing task immensely. At times I felt like a Swiss watch maker, as I tried to find the right word, arranging jewels in just the right way in a watch. Other times, like our students sometimes, I would feel clumsy and inept, unable to find the right words to capture my thoughts.
My wife, Liza, a bookseller, suggested the book could work well as an alphabet book. My father had written seven of the chapters already, and so seven are his and 19 of them are mine.
When the first copy of the book was printed, Liza brought it home and I sat to read it. As I encountered my father's words freshly, I stopped often and thought, “Gosh, he was a good writer."
As the book was being written, I relied on my colleagues at The Country School, where I was named Head of School in 2014. With support from teachers in Grades Kindergarten-5th, I visited classrooms and talked about the subject matter with students. Not only was I trying to find out what age level and ability seem to be the sweet spot for the book, but I needed some help understanding a child's perspective with words like breath and fog and memory and gravity. I'm indebted to those colleagues for giving me class time to work with their students.
I have a number of great memories from those months. One example is when I was asking for help with clues for the word “darkness.” One of the students suggested that darkness is what blind people see all the time. I never would have come up with that on my own.
Abby Carter, the book’s illustrator, was able to incorporate one of my mother’s sketches into her brilliant illustrations. It was a total joy to work with Abby and to see the way she was able to take and enliven the manuscript with her sketches. I am in awe of her art ability and creativity.
Abby and I were classmates and friends in college at Wesleyan University. About three years ago, after I began working at The Country School, we met for lunch, and I proposed we collaborate on this book. Maybe a week later, I asked her how it was going. The whimsy and whim you see in her illustrations came out in the way she responded to that question. She essentially said that she was all excited when we talked over lunch, but when she sat down at her table to begin to draw, she realized that she was being asked to sketch, literally, things that aren't. “How do you capture air, breath, shadows, an echo, fog, and gravity in an illustration?” she asked. Of course, the book is about puzzles and riddles and the talented Abby solved that puzzle 26 times brilliantly.
My father was always fascinated by puzzles and games. He worked closely with his beloved Mensa organization, trading puzzles and brainteasers with other high intelligence people from around the world. He would enjoy the exchanges even more today, with the ease of the Internet and quick response.
My father's puzzles and games overlapped with his love of running and exercise. Studies have proven that brain activity and creativity are enhanced by physical activity and the release of dopamine and chemicals. I remember runs with my father, from when I was six years old through to 22 years old, during which he would try out the latest puzzle or word game with me. “OK, John,” my father might ask, 12 miles into a 15 mile run, "You are given three objects – a paperclip, an anvil, and 12 feet of rope. What can you do that is useful with those three objects?”
Anyway, that sort of imagination game from my father was similar to the genesis of this book: "OK, John. Your mother and I are leaving you two illustrations and seven short chapters. See how you might be able to make use of them."
If you enjoy deductive reasoning and brainteasers, welcome to The Curious Guide to Things That Aren’t.
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