Sendak’s Early Life

• Maurice Bernard Sendak born June 10, 1928 in New York

• Parents were Polish Jewish immigrants

• Much of extended family killed in Holocaust

• Childhood illness confined him to bed; he drew to pass the time

• Influenced by Disney, especially Mickey & Fantasia

Sendak’s Career

• Started drawing for All-American Comics in High School

• Designed window displays & studied with the Art Students League of New York

• In early 1950’s, began illustrating other authors’ books, including two by his older brother, Jack

• First written & illustrated work: Kenny’s Window (1956)

• Where the Wild Things Are (1963) immediate success with kids but often challenged by parents & teachers

• Wrote over 20 books, illustrated more than 75 books & worked on several films and theatre productions

Sendak’s Later Life

• Awards: • Caldecott Medal (1964 for WtWtA)• Hans Christian Andersen Award (1970)• National Book Award (1982 for Outside Over There)• Laura Ingalls Wilder Medal (1983)• National Medal of Arts (1996)

• Last book, My Brother's Book, was published posthumously in 2013

• Partner of Eugene Glynn for 50 years but never told parents he was gay

• d. Danbury, Connecticut; May 8, 2012

Where The Wild Things Are

• Story and pictures by Maurice Sendak

• Published: by Harper & Row in 1963

• First edition: 40 pages, cloth back binding 25x26 cm

• Short story with vivid illustrations about Max, an angry little boy who after being sent to bed without supper, sails to the land of the wild things, where he becomes their king, only to later return to a loving supper prepared by his mother.

Immediate Success

• New York Times’ Best Illustrated Children's Book of 1963

• Winner of the 1964 Caldecott Award

• Has sold more than 19 million copies

• Often challenged and sometimes removed from libraries for various reasons, including glorification of Max’s anger, scary drawings, potential psychological trauma and supernatural elements

Iconic Illustrations

Iconic Illustrations

Iconic Illustrations

Inspiration of Story

• Wild Things originally were conceived as horses, but Sendak couldn’t draw them

• The characters as drawn were based on Sendak’s old relatives

• Sendak claimed to have written from a place of honesty, dealing with the realities of childhood, including anger, troubles with parents, and fear, but without an agenda

Lasting Legacy

• Regularly named to top children’s and picture book best lists, including School Library Journal’s #1 Picture Book (2012) and the National Education Association’s #2 Teacher’s Top Book for Children (2007).

• Adaptations: • Animated short film (1974)• Opera [for which Sendak wrote the libretto] (1980)• Live-action feature film [made with input from

Sendak] (2009)

Lasting Legacy

• Janice Del Negro, associate professor in the GSLIS, discussed Where the Wild Things Are for the Chicago Tribune after Sendak’s death in 2012: • "It changed books for children forever…He wrote for the child —

not for the adult who was buying the book or reading to the child." • The book was controversial when first published because "people

thought it was too scary... They said, 'The monsters are too scary. They will give children nightmares.’”

• "But Max is the hero of the story and he wins. He wins everything. He is the conqueror in the tale. The idea of the child being able to conquer the fear was something that little children really got. Children love it. They identify both with Max and the wild things.”

• "The design of the book, the vibrance of the art, changed the energy in picture books. The book is as fresh today as when it first came out. And it will last forever."

References

• Inskeep, Steve. "Why Maurice Sendak Puts Kid Characters in Danger." NPR. NPR, 26 Sept. 2006. Web. 07 Apr. 2013.

• Keller, Julia. "Wild Thing: Maurice Sendak Made Incomparable Art from Childhood's Monsters." Lifestyles. Chicago Tribune, 08 May 2012. Web. 12 Apr. 2013.

• "Maurice Sendak." Current Biography (Bio Ref Bank) (2012): Biography Reference Bank (H.W. Wilson). Web. 7 Apr. 2013.

• Moyers, Bill. "Maurice Sendak: ‘Where the Wild Things Are’" Bill Moyers Journal. PBS, 2004. Web. 12 Apr. 2013.

• "Teachers' Top 100 Books for Children." Nea.org. National Education Association, 2007. Web. 12 Apr. 2013.

• "Top 100 Picture Books Poll Results." School Library Journal. 6 July 2012. Web. 12 Apr. 2013.

• "Where the Wild Things Are." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 12 Apr. 2013. Web. 12 Apr. 2013.

• "Where the Wild Things Are." (Book, 1963) [WorldCat.org]. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Apr. 2013.