Danny Dunn

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Danny Dunn is a fictional character, the protagonist of a series of American juvenile science fiction/adventure books written by Raymond Abrashkin and Jay Williams beginning in 1956.

Contents

Background

The stories are set in the fictional American town of Midston. The plots feature characters who are interested in science and mathematics. [1]

Abrashkin died in 1960, after publication of the fifth book. Williams, however, insisted on Abrashkin being given co-author credit on the subsequent ten books as well, since he had been instrumental in constructing the series. Ezra Jack Keats illustrated the first four novels in the series. [2]

Although the exact location of Midston is not given, the authors wrote that a famed American of colonial times visited the town (when it was known as Middestown), implying Midston is somewhere in the original 13 states. In the book Danny Dunn and the Heat Ray, reference is made to U.S. Route 1 and U.S. Route 2 being located near Midston, and those roads meet only at Houlton, Maine. [3]

Main character

Dunn is a boy, a fifth-grader when the series starts, although the school year ends at the end of the first book. He is looking forward to a career in science. According to book reviewer Andrew Frederick, Dunn is precocious and headstrong — a redhead whose adventures mainly include getting into and out of trouble. [4]

Other characters

Books in the series

  1. Danny Dunn and the Anti-Gravity Paint (1956)
  2. Danny Dunn on a Desert Island (1957)
  3. Danny Dunn and the Homework Machine (1958) (Irene introduced)
  4. Danny Dunn and the Weather Machine (1959)
  5. Danny Dunn on the Ocean Floor (1960)
  6. Danny Dunn and the Fossil Cave (1961)
  7. Danny Dunn and the Heat Ray (1962)
  8. Danny Dunn, Time Traveler (1963)
  9. Danny Dunn and the Automatic House (1965)
  10. Danny Dunn and the Voice from Space (1967)
  11. Danny Dunn and the Smallifying Machine (1969)
  12. Danny Dunn and the Swamp Monster (1971)
  13. Danny Dunn, Invisible Boy (1974)
  14. Danny Dunn Scientific Detective (1976)
  15. Danny Dunn and the Universal Glue (1977)

Albums

Reception

Floyd C. Gale of Galaxy Science Fiction said in 1961 that "Danny's adventures are always based on a solid science foundation, once the authors' usually wild main premise is digested". [5]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ezra Jack Keats</span> American childrens writer and illustrator

Ezra Jack Keats was an American writer and illustrator of children's books. He won the 1963 Caldecott Medal for illustrating The Snowy Day, which he also wrote. Keats wrote A Letter to Amy and Hi, Cat! but he was most famous for The Snowy Day. It is considered one of the most important American books of the 20th century.

Raymond Abrashkin was an American writer and filmmaker. He is known for writing, co-producing, and co-directing Little Fugitive and for co-creating and co-writing with Jay Williams the Danny Dunn series of science fiction books for children.

Jay Williams was an American author of science fiction, fantasy, historical fiction, non-fiction, and radical theatre.

<i>Danny Dunn, Invisible Boy</i> 1974 novel by Raymond Abrashkin

Danny Dunn, Invisible Boy is the thirteenth novel in the Danny Dunn series of juvenile science fiction/adventure books written by Raymond Abrashkin and Jay Williams. The book was first published in 1974.

<i>Danny Dunn and the Anti-Gravity Paint</i> 1956 novel by Raymond Abrashkin

Danny Dunn and the Anti-Gravity Paint is the first novel in the Danny Dunn series of juvenile science fiction/adventure books written by Raymond Abrashkin and Jay Williams. The book was first published in 1956 and originally illustrated by Ezra Jack Keats.

<i>Danny Dunn and the Homework Machine</i> 1958 novel by Raymond Abrashkin and Jay Williams

Danny Dunn and the Homework Machine is the third novel in the Danny Dunn series of juvenile science fiction/adventure books written by Raymond Abrashkin and Jay Williams. The book is "about a boy who invents a machine to do his homework for him only to be tricked into doing more with his spare time".

<i>Danny Dunn and the Weather Machine</i> 1959 novel by Raymond Abrashkin

Danny Dunn and the Weather Machine is the fourth novel in the Danny Dunn series of juvenile science fiction/adventure books written by Raymond Abrashkin and Jay Williams. The book was first published in 1959 and originally illustrated by Ezra Jack Keats.

<i>Danny Dunn on the Ocean Floor</i> 1960 novel by Raymond Abrashkin

Danny Dunn on the Ocean Floor is the fifth novel in the Danny Dunn series of juvenile science fiction/adventure books written by Raymond Abrashkin and Jay Williams. The book was first published in 1960.

<i>Danny Dunn and the Fossil Cave</i> 1961 novel by Raymond Abrashkin

Danny Dunn and the Fossil Cave is the sixth novel in the Danny Dunn series of juvenile science fiction/adventure books written by Raymond Abrashkin and Jay Williams. The book was first published in 1961.

<i>Danny Dunn, Time Traveler</i> 1963 novel by Raymond Abrashkin

Danny Dunn, Time Traveler is the eighth novel in the Danny Dunn series of juvenile science fiction/adventure books written by Raymond Abrashkin and Jay Williams. The book was first published in 1963.

<i>Danny Dunn and the Automatic House</i> 1965 novel by Raymond Abrashkin

Danny Dunn and the Automatic House is the ninth novel in the Danny Dunn series of juvenile science fiction/adventure books written by Raymond Abrashkin and Jay Williams. The book was first published in 1965.

<i>Danny Dunn and the Smallifying Machine</i> 1969 novel by Jay Williams

Danny Dunn and the Smallifying Machine is the eleventh novel in the Danny Dunn series of juvenile science fiction/adventure books written by Raymond Abrashkin and Jay Williams. The book was first published in 1969.

<i>Danny Dunn and the Swamp Monster</i> 1971 juvenile science fiction/adventure novel by Raymond Abrashkin

Danny Dunn and the Swamp Monster is the twelfth novel in the Danny Dunn series of juvenile science fiction/adventure books written by Raymond Abrashkin and Jay Williams. The book was first published in 1971. An audiobook of the work was released by the Listening Library in 1985.

<i>Danny Dunn Scientific Detective</i> 1976 novel by Raymond Abrashkin and Jay Williams

Danny Dunn Scientific Detective is the fourteenth novel in the Danny Dunn series of juvenile science fiction/adventure books written by Raymond Abrashkin and Jay Williams. The book was first published in 1976.

<i>Danny Dunn and the Universal Glue</i> 1977 novel by Raymond Abrashkin and Jay Williams

Danny Dunn and the Universal Glue is the fifteenth and final novel in the Danny Dunn series of juvenile science fiction/adventure books written by Raymond Abrashkin and Jay Williams. The book was first published in 1977.

<i>Danny Dunn on a Desert Island</i> 1957 novel by Raymond Abrashkin

Danny Dunn on a Desert Island is the second novel in the Danny Dunn series of juvenile science fiction/adventure books written by Raymond Abrashkin and Jay Williams. The book was first published in 1957 and originally illustrated by Ezra Jack Keats.

Invisible Boy or variant, may refer to:

The year 1956 was marked, in science fiction, by the following events.

The year 1957 was marked, in science fiction, by the following events.

References

  1. Williams, Patricia de Belloy (October 6, 1979). "Mini Bookmark". Bangor Daily News . p. 4MP. Retrieved February 4, 2011.
  2. Alderson, Brian (2002). Ezra Jack Keats: a bibliography and catalogue. Gretna, Louisiana: Pelican Publishing Company. pp. 34, 35, 39, 42, 45, 46. ISBN   1-56554-007-7 . Retrieved November 15, 2010 via University of Southern Mississippi.
  3. Abrashkin, Raymond and Williams, Jay. Danny Dunn and the Heat Ray (McGraw-Hill 1962).
  4. Frederick, Andrew. "The Danny Dunn series, by Jay Williams and Raymond Abrashkin", Allison's Book Bag; Reviews of books for young people (November 17, 2012). Frederick wrote here under the pseudonym "Andulamb".
  5. Gale, Floyd C. (October 1961). "Galaxy's 5 Star Shelf". Galaxy Science Fiction. pp. 173–177.