Maurice Sendak, writer and illustrator of immortal children’s books, turns 80 today. He finds that children’s experiences in particular—joy and discovery, fear and suffering—are among the purest and strongest ones there are. And children recognize that he is truly talking to them. For me, “Where the Wild Things Are” picked up where “Beauty and the Beast” left off. In Sendak’s cosmos, monsters are moody, melancholy beasts that a child can tame and overcome. Max’ order, “Let the wild rumpus start!” is quite possibly the best invitation to a party ever. (Sendak has fans at Lesekreis.) Sendak is still going strong…
Pop-up book 2007: Mommy?
Aside from the Wild Things, he came up with unbelievable triplet monsters in the shape of … but see for yourself.
In the Night Kitchen
