Michael Hague – American illustrator, b. 1948

Influenced by turn-of-the-century illustrators Arthur Rackham, N. C. Wyeth, and Howard Pyle as well as by Dis­ney comic books, Michael Hague has created his own distinctive illustrations of many classic works of chil­dren’s literature. Among his tides are Mother Goose: A Collection of Classic Nursery Rhymes (1984), Peter Pan (1987), and The Fairy Tales of Oscar Wilde (1993).

Michael Hague was born in Los Angeles and showed an early talent for drawing, encouraged by his mother, who had attended art school in England, Hague remembers mak­ing illustrations for his favorite King Arthur books and doing portraits of his favorite baseball players. Baseball was a serious interest of Hague’s all through high school, but he returned to his early interest in art when he entered college. Both Hague and his wife, Kathleen, graduated from the Los Angeles Art Center College of Design and were married while they were students. After graduation, Hague worked for Hallmark Cards in Kansas City, and then for Current, Inc., in Colorado Springs, where he still lives.

While illustrating cards and calendars, he was invited to illustrate Jane Yolen’s Dream Weaver (1979), a book chosen for the American Institute of Graphic Arts Book Show. Five books illustrated by Hague were pub­lished in 1980, including The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame, and it was this book that earned Hague widespread attention. It is always intimidating to tackle the re-illustration of a revered classic, but Hague felt a particularly strong bond with this riverbank tale of four animal friends.

As Hague said, he did not intend to create a new look, but wanted to “infuse [his] illustra­tions with the same spirit that Kenneth Grahame’s mag­ic words convey.” He succeeds admirably and with fond detail defines the personality of each character. The opening illustration captures the hubris of Mr. Toad as he stands in the splendor of his drawing room sur­rounded by likenesses of himself. The busy industry of Mole at work with his bucket of whitewash, the sumptu­ous bounty of Ratty’s picnic repast, and the cozy securi­ty of Badger’s warm and well-supplied home in the Wild Wood—all of these scenes prepare the reader to enjoy this classic tale of friendship and adventure.

Michael Hague went on to illustrate Michael Hague’s Favorite Hans Christian Andersen Fairy Tales (1981), L. Frank Baum’s The Wizard of Oz (1982), and Nancy Luenn’s The Dragon Kite (1982). With Kathleen he published The Man Who Kept House (1981) and Alphabears: An ABC Book (1984).

Hague is particularly adept at creating believable worlds for his characters to inhabit, from the very English setting of The Wind in the Willows to the fantasy world of J. R. R, Tolkien’s The Hobbit (1984). The ter­rifying red dragon, the gigantic poisonous spiders, the spooky Mirkwood—all are rendered darkly ominous.

More comfortable than challenging, Hague’s most successful illustrations are found in his versions of the well-loved classics of children’s literature.

P.H.

Source: Children’s Books and their Creators, Anita Silvey.

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Micheal Hague’s Bibliography

• Gulliver in Lilliput: A Hallmark Pop-Up Book (Hallmark Children’s Editions, 1975)
• The Cabbage Moth and the Shamrock by Ethel Marbach (Green Tiger Press, 1978)
• Dream Weaver by Jan Yolen (Collins, 1979)
• A Necklace of Fallen Stars by Beth Hilgartner (Little, Brown, 1879)
• Beauty and the Beast retold by Deborah Apy (Holt, Rhinehart & Winston, 1980)
• Demetrius and the Golden Goblet by Eve Bunting (Harcourt, Brace, Jovanovich, 1980)
• Dragons of Light by Orson Scott Card and Dave Smeds (Ace Books, 1980)
• East of the Sun and West of the Moon retold by Kathleen and Michael Hague (Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1980)
• Moments: Poems about the Seasons edited by Lee Bennett Hopkins (Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1980)
• A Mouse called Junction by Julia Cunningham (Pantheon, 1980)
• The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame (Henry Holt & Co., 1980)
• The Man Who Kept House (Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1981)
• Michael Hague’s Favourite Hans Christian Andersen Fairy Tales by Hans Christian Andersen and Jane S. Woodward (Holt, Rhinehart & Winston, 1981)
• The Night before Christmas by Clement C. Moore (Holt, Rinehart & Winston, 1981)
• The Unicorn and the Lake by Marianna Mayer (Dial Books for Young Readers, 1982)
• The Dragon Kite by Nancy Luenn (Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1982)
• The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis (Macmillan, 1983)
• The Reluctant Dragon by Kenneth Grahame (Holt, Rinehart & Winston, 1983)
• The Velveteen Rabbit by Margery Williams (Holt, Rhinehart & Winston, 1983)
• Alphabears: An ABC Book by Kathleen Hague (Holt, Rinehart & Winston, 1984)
• The Frog Princess retold by Elizabeth Isle (Thomas Y. Crowell, 1984)
• The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien (Houghton Mifflin, 1984)
• Mother Goose: A Collection of Classic Nursery Rhymes (Holt, Rinehart & Winston, 1984)
• Rapunzel by Jakob Grimm and Wilhelm Grimm (Creative Education, 1984)
• Aesop’s Fables (Holt, Rinehart & Winston, 1985)
• Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll (Holt, Rinehart & Winston, 1985)
• A Child’s Book of Prayers (Holt, Rinehart & Winston, 1985)
• The Legend of the Veery Bird by Kathleen Hague (Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1985)
• Numbears: A Counting Book by Kathleen Hague (Holt, Rinehart & Winston, 1986)
• Out of the Nursery, into the Night by Kathleen Hague (Holt, Rinehart & Winston, 1986)
• Enchanted World Series
  • Seekers and Saviors (1986), vol. 12
  • Fabled Lands (1986), vol. 13
• Michael Hague’s World of Unicorns (Holt, Rinehart & Winston, 1986), revised as Michael Hague’s Magical World of Unicorns (Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 1999)
• Unicorn Pop-up Book (Holt, Rinehart & Winston, 1986)
• Peter Pan by J.M. Barrie (Henry Holt & Co., 1987)
• The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett (Henry Holt, 1987)
• The Land of Nod, and Other Poems for Children by Robert Louis Stevenson (Holt, Rinehart & Winston, 1988)
• Rootabaga Stories, Part One by Carl Sandburg (Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1988)
• Rootabaga Stories, Part Two by Carl Sandburg (Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1989)
• Bear Hugs by Kathleen Hague (Holt, Rinehart & Winston, 1989)
• Cinderella and Other Tales from Perrault (Henry Holt & Co., 1989)
• The Fairies by William Allingham (Henry Holt & Co., 1989)
• The Unicorn Alphabet by Marianna Mayer (Dial, 1989)
• The Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum (Holt, Rinehart & Winston 1989)
• Old Mother West Wind by Thornton W. Burgess (Holt, Rinehart & Winston, 1990)
• Jingle Bells (Henry Holt & Co, 1990)
• Prairie-Town Boy by Carl Sandburg [With Joe Krush] (Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1990)
• My Secret Garden Diary (Arcade, 1990)
• Magic Moments: A Book of Days (Arcade, 1990)
• Our Baby: A Book of Records and Memories (Arcade, 1990)
• A Unicorn Journal (Arcade, 1990)
• The Borrowers by Mary Norton (Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1991)
• The Pilgrim’s Regress by C. S. Lewis (Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co.; 1992)
• Michael Hague’s Illustrated “The Teddy Bears’ Picnic” (Holt, Rinehart & Winston, 1992)
• Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star (Morrow Junior Books, 1992)
• South Pacific retold by James A. Michener (Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1992)
• The Rainbow Fairy Book (Morrow, 1993)
• The Fairy Tales of Oscar Wilde (Michael O’Mara Books, 1993)
• The Little Mermaid by Hans Christian Andersen (Holt, Rinehart & Winston, 1993)
• Little Women by Louisa May Alcott (Holt, Rinehart & Winston, 1993)
• Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear: A Classic Action Rhyme (Morrow, 1993)
• Sleep, Baby, Sleep: Lullabies and Night Poems (Morrow, 1994)
• The Book of Dragons (Morrow, 1995)
• The Children’s Book of Virtues edited by William J. Bennett (Simon & Schuster, 1995)
• Michael Hague’s Family Christmas Treasury (Holt, Rinehart & Winston, 1995)
• The Owl and the Pussy-Cat, and Other Nonsense Poems (North-South Books, 1995)
• Michael Hague’s Family Easter Treasury (Holt, Rinehart & Winston, 1996)
• The Perfect Present (Morrow, 1996)
• The Children’s Book of Heroes edited by William J. Bennett (Simon & Schuster, 1997)
• The Story of Doctor Dolittle by Hugh Lofting (Books of Wonder, 1997)
• The Children’s Book of America edited by William J. Bennett (Simon & Schuster, 1998)
• The Twenty-third Psalm: From the King James Bible (Holt, Rinehart & Winston, 1999)
• Ten Little Bears: A Counting Rhyme (Morrow, 1999)
• The Book of Fairies (HarperCollins, 2000)
• The Children’s Treasury of Virtues edited by William J. Bennett (Simon & Schuster, 2000)
• The Children’s Book of Faith edited by William J. Bennett (Doubleday, 2000)
• A Wind in the Willows Christmas (SeaStar Books, 2000)
• The Book of Pirates (HarperCollins, 2001)
• Kate Culhane, a Ghost Story (SeaStar Books, 2001)
• The Tale of Peter Rabbit by Beatrix Potter (2001)
• The Voyages of Doctor Dolittle by Hugh Lofting (Books of Wonder, 2001)
• The Children’s Book of Home and Family edited by William J. Bennett (Doubleday Books for Young Readers, 2002)
• Good Night, Fairies by Kathleen Hague (SeaStar Books, 2002)
• The Teddy Bears’ Picnic by Jimmy Kennedy (Henry Holt, 2002)
• The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus by L. Frank Baum (Henry Holt, 2003)
• The Nutcracker (Chronicle, 2003)
• The Book of Fairy Poetry (HarperCollins, 2004)
• Legendary Creatures of Myth and Magic by Marianna Mayer (Madison Park Press, 2006)
• Lionel and the Book of Beasts by E. Nesbit, retold by Michael Hague (HarperCollins, 2006)
• Animal Friends: A Collection of Poems for Children (Henry Holt, 2007)
• Little Bitty Mousie by Jim Aylesworth (Walker & Company, 2007)
• The Book of Wizards (HarperCollins, 2008)
• In the Small (Little, Brown, 2008)
• Irving Berlin’s White Christmas (HarperCollins, 2010)
• Michael Hague’s Treasured Classics (Chronicle, 2011)
• Michael Hague’s Read-to-Me Book of Fairy Tales (HarperCollins, 2013)