“I don't like to get scared - it's not one of the emotions I enjoy. So ...” — Chris Van Allsburg Quote

I don't like to get scared - it's not one of the emotions I enjoy. So I have to assume that if there are scary things in my books, they aren't very scary.

Growing up in the 1950s, in Grand Rapids, Michigan, boys were supposed to be athletic.

There's definitely a value in being literate.

I've always thought of the book as a visual art form, and it should represent a single artistic idea, which it does if you write your own material.

'The Polar Express' began with the idea of a train standing alone in the woods. I asked myself, 'What if a boy gets on that train? Where does he go?'

A lot of people assume that once you're working in Hollywood you become some sort of glamour-diva, which could not be further from the truth about me.

I don't believe that I personally have been changed by the money. The bad thing is people assume you've changed because now you have money.

People assume that somehow fame and wealth will keep mortality at bay.

A lot of cats in New Orleans, very soulful, very soulful musicians and they assume that they're singers. And they just make that assumption. And so when there's a little intonation problem, people are very forgiving of them because they heard how soulful they play.