IT'S THE AUTHOR'S WORLD.

Byline: Evan Henerson Staff Writer

For nearly 20 years, grown-ups have been reading to children a story about a magical train journey to the North Pole, the first gift of Christmas and a special bell audible only to those who believe in Santa Claus and the spirit of Christmas.

And for nearly that long, Chris Van Allsburg, author of ``The Polar Express,'' has been asked by fans young and old whether HE can still hear the bell.

``Oh yeah,'' says Van Allsburg with a chuckle. ``But they shouldn't have to ask. I wrote a book asserting that I do.''

``The Polar Express'' (1985) is a Caldecott Medal winner and now the basis of a new film directed by Robert Zemeckis and starring Tom Hanks. The movie, a G-rated holiday tale with plenty of roller-coaster-like action, builds on Van Allsburg's story of a boy who takes a Christmas Eve trip to the North Pole and ends up in a memorable powwow with St. Nick.

To flesh out the movie, which opens Wednesday in theaters and simultaneously in IMAX 3D, Zemeckis and Hanks have added characters (including more children and a mysterious hobo), beefed up the role of the conductor and thrown in plenty of peril. Van Allsburg, who had minimal involvement with the film beyond consultations with Hanks and Zemeckis, says he actually would have endorsed even greater artistic license than the filmmakers took.

``They had the determination to essentially dramatize the conflict the kid has in the book,'' says Van Allsburg, who previously saw his book ``Jumanji'' adapted for film. ``It's not like I'm an architect holding a blueprint, which I then hand over to a builder. I've written a relatively simple picture book, and it has inspired a filmmaker to want to make a film out of it. I accept the reality that it's now someone else's artistic undertaking, and I'm going to trust that their inspiration leads them to a good place.''

Van Allsburg, who lives in Providence, R.I., will be at Every Picture Tells a Story in Santa Monica on Nov. 15 signing copies of ``The Polar Express'' and introducing a limited-edition hardbound volume of the story that ties in with the movie. One hundred and seventy five copies of the book - signed by the author, Zemeckis and Hanks - will have modern digital printing drawn from the author's original illustrations.

Those illustrations served as an inspiration for the movie as well, although as book purists will recognize, the look differs between page and screen. That's fine with Van Allsburg, who says he was prepared to fight to have the mood of the story consistent with what was put on screen.

But he says he didn't have to.

``There are limitations to what you can do visually, although this movie suggests that those limitations are getting smaller and smaller,'' he says. ``I think the sort of soft mushiness of the pastel drawings lends the book some of its other worldliness. The film still has that. And with that strange quality of the characters, you can tell they're not really human, but they don't look like they're a creation from some animation artist either.''

Sales of the limited-edition ``Polar Express,'' which cost $3,000 each, will help benefit the Draw a Breath Foundation at Hasbro's Children's Hospital in Providence. Van Allsburg's daughter, Sophia, has battled pediatric asthma.

Evan Henerson, [phone]

evan.henerson(at)dailynews.com

CHRIS VAN ALLSBURG

What: The author signs copies of ``The Polar Express.''

Where: San Marino Toy and Book Shop, 2424 Huntington Drive, San Marino.

When: 4:30 p.m. Nov. 15.

Tickets: Free. Van Allsburg will sign copies of any book purchased at the store. Books to be signed must be reserved with a credit card prior to Nov. 15, or you can buy them at the shop on day of the event. Call [phone].

Where: Every Picture Tells a Story, 1311 Montana Ave., Santa Monica.

When: 7 p.m. Nov. 15.

Tickets: Free. Van Allsburg will sign copies of any book purchased at the store. Call [phone].

CAPTION(S):

2 photos

Photo:

(1) no caption (Chris Van Allsburg)

(2) no caption (book: ``The Polar Express'')