The next Christmas classic, Boris The Christmas Tarantula just 
hit the world of online bookstores. Written by New York writer and performer Joel Jeske and illustrated by paper-cutting artist Emmanuel Jose, BORIS tells the story of an innocent giant tarantula that loves Christmas more than anything else. Using his talents as his guide, BORIS saves the day and finds a place to belong with Santa and his family of elves at the North Pole. BORIS will be available in hardcover or eBOOK on Amazon.com, BarnesandNoble.com, Powell’s Books, and Books-A-Million. Through the publisher, Bookbaby, BORIS will also be available on a wholesale book network including Ingram Baker & Taylor, Bookazine, and BPDI Corp.
According to author Joel Jeske and illustrator Emmanuel Jose, “Christmas is a celebration of joy and good will that can easily get lost with the stress of the holiday. Every once in a while a gentle, if not intimidating, reminder comes along in the most unlikely way. BORIS, through his love of Christmas, reminds us all to be good to ourselves and others on Christmas and every day of the year.”
Joel Jeske is a writer/performer living in New York City. For the past 12 years his Christmas job has been performing the character of Justin Time, the magical train conductor to takes visitors by train to see Santa Claus. After experiencing the highs and lows of the holiday season in a city like New York, Joel conceived the character of BORIS during a particularly busy shopping day. The character quickly created a fan base of interested children and adults who actually wanted to visit a happy giant tarantula for Christmas. The story was written and has now made its way into print for everyone to enjoy this upcoming holiday season.
Joel has created and performed his own shows both internationally and around the United States. He is currently the creator and lead clown in this year’s Big Apple Circus production: The Grand Tour. He has been nominated for three Drama Desk Awards with his physical theater company Parallel Exit. His website is www.joeljeske.com.
Emmanuel Jose is a paper-cutting artist who also lives in New York City. Struck by the simple love of Christmas of the main character, BORIS, Emmanuel evokes the depth, imagination, and story telling of timeless Christmas windows of
the past with his three dimensional illustrations. The design for BORIS was created with audiences of all ages in mind. He may be lovable to children, but even the adults can appreciate the humorous plight of a misfit giant tarantula.
Originally from Raleigh, North Carolina, Emmanuel perfected his paper-cutting technique through the design of custom playing cards, or transformation decks. At the goal of one card a week, he has completed four playing card decks to date: The Curator Deck, The Clipped Wings Deck (bird themed), The Sawdust Deck (circus themed), and the Delicious Deck (food themed). Emmanuel was honored with an art show at the Big Apple Circus at Lincoln Center last January, displaying all the original art from the Sawdust Deck. Further examples of his art can be seen on his website emmanueljose.com.
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