Summary
A poignant exploration of love, loss, and possibility, inspired by the last story idea from the legendary John Burningham.
Miles was a difficult dog until he got his own motor car. But now he is growing older, and new challenges are arising. He doesn't chase balls like he used to. His legs hurt whenever he takes walks. And sometimes he doesn't hear when Norman calls him. So when Norman learns that Mr. Huddy's small airplane is in need of a pilot, Miles takes to the skies. In a deeply moving, ultimately uplifting picture book, the star of Motor Miles returns in a story that will resonate with readers who know what it's like to say goodbye to someone they love. Based on an idea by incomparable picture-book creator John Burningham, the text for Air Miles was completed by his longtime friend Bill Salaman and lovingly illustrated by Helen Oxenbury, John Burningham's wife.
John Burningham was born in Farnham, United Kingdom on April 27, 1936. After two and a half years of non-military service as a conscientious objector, he graduated from Central School of Art with distinction in 1959. Before becoming a children's author and illustrator, he made puppets for Yoram Gross's animation film Joseph the Dreamer and was commissioned to produce a number of posters for London Transport.
Burningham's first picture book, Borka: The Adventures of a Goose with No Feathers, was published in 1963 and won the Kate Greenaway Medal. His other books included Humbert, Avocado Baby, Oi! Get Off Our Train, Courtney, Harvey Slumfenburger's Christmas Present, Come Away from the Water, Shirley, England, Cloudland, France, and There's Going to Be a Baby written with his wife and fellow illustrator Helen Oxenbury. He also illustrated Ian Fleming's Chitty Chitty Bang Bang in 1964 and Kenneth Grahame's The Wind in the Willows in 1983. He received the Kate Greenaway Medal in 1970 for Mr. Gumpy's Outing, the Kurt Maschler award in 1984 for Granpa, and the Booktrust lifetime achievement award in 2018 with Oxenbury. Burningham died on January 4, 2019 at the age of 82.
(Bowker Author Biography)
