Many writers have now had their birthdays marked with a decorative Google Doodle: from Jules Verne’s interactive, underwater themed doodle to J. M. Barrie’s Peter Pan becoming acquainted with the Google logo. Let’s remind ourselves of some of the best…

Hans Christian Andersen 205^th birthday Google Doodle, 2 April 2010:

Thumbelina may have an extremely tiny stature, but she gained monolithic online attention when her enchanting story was recounted as a Google Doodle. With each rapid click of the mouse the Google logo changed into 5 segments of Hans Christian Andersen’s Thumbelina tale. The first image depicts the miniature heroine emerging from a cluster of petals into the world. In the second stage she escapes marriage with an amphibian by seeking refuge with a furry, field mouse. The next part of her adventure shows Thumbelina thrust out into a frosty, bleak landscape. The fourth picture is of Thumbelina letting the wind flutter her hair as she takes a ride on a soaring swallow through golden skies. And finally, Thumbelina triumphantly ties the knot with the flower prince. His other magical fairytales which have left swathes of children spellbound includes: the princess whose sleepless night was blamed on a single green pea and the sad, ugly, little duckling that later metamorphoses into a regal swan.

Mary Shelley’s 213^th birthday Google Doodle, 30 August 2010:

Mary Shelley, daughter of the feminist Mary Wollstonecraft, was honoured with a Google Doodle on 30 August last year. The Google Doodle refers to the sinister tale of the Swiss scientist and philosopher, Frankenstein, who meddles too far with nature. With a wild and utterly mad whirlwind of energy he creates his own creature from a ghastly array of bones from the charnel house, unwittingly constructing a tragically grotesque monster. The Doodle itself depicts a room steeped in darkness and decorated with an assortment of mysterious and eerie portraits. A shadowy figure leaps out at the doorway with frightening vigour. In fact, this Doodle has been described by a number of bloggers as “the creepiest Doodle ever”. Will there be another literary Doodle who will steal this title?

Oscar Wilde’s 156^th birthday Google Doodle, 16 October 2010:

Google went wild about Wilde on 16 October 2010, by celebrating the writer with his very own Google Doodle. Wilde’s exquisitely written story of the stunningly beautiful Dorian Gray who traded his soul with the devil in exchange for eternal beauty has been transformed into a monochrome Doodle. Dorian’s fatal bargain with the fallen angel meant that Dorian will retain his handsome visage whilst his painted portrait grows old and bears the physical burdens of Dorian’s sins. Dorian went to great lengths to hide his hideous portrait and the magic of his secret youth in the attic, but Google Doodle has revealed what he sought so hard to conceal. The Doodle shows the flawless beauty, Dorian Gray staring out from the gloominess whilst his decayed and shrivelled monster of a portrait glares in the background menacingly.

Jane Austen’s 235^th birthday Google Doodle, 16 December 2010:

Google decided to invite a handsomely dressed man and a beautiful heroine from one of Jane Austen’s novels to visit Google’s homepage for a lovely day out. The occasion? Jane Austen’s 235^th birthday. Austen’s novels are truly well loved, from Emma’s foolish and inadequate matchmaking skills to gullible Catherine Morland’s intense interest in haunted Gothic locations. The Prince Regent was so impressed with Austen’s books that each of his residences contained a set of her splendidly witty novels.

Roger Hargreaves’ 76^th birthday Google Doodle, 9 May 2011:

Google created an extravagant 16 Google Doodle images based on Roger Hargreaves’ Mr Men series. The idea behind the books came about when Hargreaves’ son Adam wondered how a tickle looked like, the illustrator responded with a drawing of a mischievous character with incredibly long, wobbly arms. The Doodles include Little Miss Naughty cheekily sprinting away with a stolen hat, Mr Bump carelessly knocking over the Google sign, and Mr Messy splattering dollops of paint all over the once pristine search engine logo. More than 100 million copies of Mr Men have been sold globally in 28 countries, and will without a doubt continue to do so.

So which literary icon will have his or her own Google Doodle next? Which storytelling genius deserves to have their skills applauded on the Google website? Wouldn’t it be marvellous if Google unveiled a Doodle for Patrick Süskind incorporating scenes from his novel, Perfume: the Story of a Murderer? How about an animated Google logo featuring the quivering nostrils of Jean-Baptiste Grenouille as he tracks down the scent of the girl cleaning the yellow plums? Or the logo could be adorned with Grenouille’s perfume (The precious potion which made the perfumer, Baldini, dream a sublime scene in a garden softened with evening light, rose petals fluttering, birds cooing, and a beautiful lady whispering ‘I-love-you’).

What if Google users were greeted with a logo featuring a scenario plucked out of the superb writer, Sarah Waters’ book, The Little Stranger? Perhaps it could become the next ‘creepiest Doodle ever’ with the Google lettering witnessing the moment when the brass-framed mirror violently lunges out at its owner. Moreover, the significant moment, in Atonement, when Cecilia takes a dip in the fountain to retrieve a fallen over vase, could also form part of a Doodle as a celebratory gesture to Ian McEwan’s enormous creative talent. Which writer would you like to see Google say ‘Happy Birthday!’ to? There are many more fabulous authors who should be complimented with a Google Doodle, and I for one can’t wait to see which ones will be next in line.

About Emily Cleaver

Emily Cleaver is Litro's Online Editor. She is passionate about short stories and writes, reads and reviews them. Her own stories have been published in the London Lies anthology from Arachne Press, Paraxis, .Cent, The Mechanics’ Institute Review, One Eye Grey, and Smoke magazines, performed to audiences at Liars League, Stand Up Tragedy, WritLOUD, Tales of the Decongested and Spark London and broadcasted on Resonance FM and Pagan Radio. As a former manager of one of London’s oldest second-hand bookshops, she also blogs about old and obscure books. You can read her tiny true dramas about working in a secondhand bookshop at smallplays.com and see more of her writing at emilycleaver.net.

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