Poetic, takes you to a different world!
Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak
Book on Amazon | My review on Amazon
5 out of 5 stars
Reviewed November 25, 2009
Maurice Sendak’s wonderful art is the first thing that hits you about this book. The story is simple – a boy does naughty things, is sent off to bed without dinner. He goes (in his mind) to a fantasy land where the wild things are… but hunger makes him return to his room – to find a hot dinner waiting for him there. Mommy did not have the heart to really send him to bed without dinner after all!
The text lends itself to a nice rhythmic reading, there’s lots of drama in it with monsters and partying. Yet the little boy in the middle of his wild freedom, wants parental comfort:
“And Max, the king of all wild things, was lonely and wanted to be where someone loved him best of all.”
To give an idea of the poetic nature of the story, here’s a snippet, where Max travels back from the place where the wild things are:
“… sailed back over a year
and in and out of weeks
and through a day…”
I love the way reality and fantasy are spun together in this story. My kids, 5.5 yrs and 3.5 yrs, love the book as well.
