About the Exquisite Corpse Adventure

The Exquisite Corpse Adventure

Ever heard of an Exquisite Corpse? It's not what you might think. An Exquisite Corpse is an old game in which people write a phrase on a sheet of paper, fold it over to conceal part of it and pass it on to the next player to do the same. The game ends when someone finishes the story, which is then read aloud.

Our "Exquisite Corpse Adventure" works this way: Jon Scieszka, the National Ambassador for Young People's Literature, has written the first episode, which is "pieced together out of so many parts that it is not possible to describe them all here, so go ahead and just start reading!" He has passed it on to a cast of celebrated writers and illustrators, who must eventually bring the story to an end.

Every two weeks, there will be a new episode and a new illustration. The story will conclude a year from now. To get bi-weekly updates with new Exquisite Corpse Adventure chapters, click on the subscribe link at the top of the page. "This story starts with a train rushing through the night...." No one knows where or how it will end!

Read itEpisode 1 – “ . . . Just Start Reading

Contributed by: Jon Scieszka
Illustration by: Chris Van Dusen

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Read itEpisode 2 – “The Lost Clue

Contributed by: Katherine Paterson
Illustration by: James Ransome

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Read itEpisode 3 – “This chapter is entitled (what else?) THE FOUND CLUE

Contributed by: Kate DiCamillo
Illustration by: Calef Brown

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Read itEpisode 4 – “Dig That Pig

Contributed by: Susan Cooper
Illustration by: Timothy Basil Ering

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Read itEpisode 5 – “The Exquisite Corpse

Contributed by: Gregory Maguire
Illustration by: Chris Van Dusen

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Read itEpisode 6 – “Surprise! Surprise! Surprise!

Contributed by: Patricia C. and Fredrick L. McKissack
Illustration by: James Ransome

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Read itEpisode 7 – “The Beast Pit

Contributed by: Shannon Hale
Illustration by: Calef Brown

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Read itEpisode 8 – “A Possible Solution

Contributed by: Natalie Babbitt
Illustration by: Timothy Basil Ering

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Read itEpisode 9 – “In Arm's Way

Contributed by: Natalie Babbitt
Illustration by: Timothy Basil Ering

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Read itEpisode 10 – “Wolf at the Door

Contributed by: Megan McDonald
Illustration by: James Ransome

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Read itEpisode 11 – “A Second Arm

Contributed by: Steven Kellogg
Illustration by: Steven Kellogg

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Read itEpisode 12 – “The Shadowy Abyss of Our Own Fates

Contributed by: Lemony Snicket
Illustration by: Timothy Basil Ering

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Read itEpisode 13 – “Lucky Episode 13: Out of the Cradle, Into the Fire

Contributed by: M. T. Anderson
Illustration by: Chris Van Dusen

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Read itEpisode 14 – “Skills

Contributed by: Linda Sue Park
Illustration by: James Ransome

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Read itEpisode 15 – “The Gingerbread House

Contributed by: Katherine Paterson
Illustration by: Calef Brown

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Read itEpisode 16 – “If I Only Had a Leg

Contributed by: Kate DiCamillo
Illustration by: Timothy Basil Ering

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Read itEpisode 17 – “Speak, Memory

Contributed by: Susan Cooper
Illustration by: Chris Van Dusen

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Read itEpisode 18 – “The Regional Conference

Contributed by: Gregory Maguire
Illustration by: James Ransome

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Read itEpisode 19 – “Legs on the Run

Contributed by: Shannon Hale
Illustration by: Calef Brown

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Read itEpisode 20 – “An Angel Descends

Contributed by: Steven Kellogg
Illustration by: Timothy Basil Ering

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Read itEpisode 21 – “Anything At All

Contributed by: Linda Sue Park
Illustration by: Chris Van Dusen

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Read itEpisode 22 – “Meanwhile, Near a Meadow

Contributed by: Lemony Snicket
Illustration by: James Ransome

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Read itEpisode 23 – “Promises, Promises, and More Promises

Contributed by: Patricia C. and Fredrick L. McKissack
Illustration by: Calef Brown

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Read itEpisode 24 – “When Is a Door Not a Door?

Contributed by: Natalie Babbitt
Illustration by: Timothy Basil Ering

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Read itEpisode 25 – “Que Sera, Sera.

Contributed by: Jack Gantos
Illustration by: Chris Van Dusen

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Read itEpisode 26 – “The Final Scramble

Contributed by: Jack Gantos
Illustration by: Chris Van Dusen

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Read itEpisode 27 – “The Final Scramble

Contributed by: Katherine Paterson
Illustration by: Calef Brown

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Walter Dean MyersWalter Dean Myers is the new National Ambassador for Young People's Literature

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