Where the Wild Things Are
By Maurice Sendak
Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak succeeded in catching my eye after learning about modern fantasy in class. I don't really know much about fantasy but I wanted to explore it a little. I figured any book with a "wild thing" sleeping under a pink tree must have elements of fantasy within it, and the Caldecott Medal finely displayed on the cover let me know I was making a good choice!
I had previously heard of the movie Where the Wild Things Are but had never watched it, and I also didn't realize it was based on a popular children's book. I was also surprised to see that it is an older book (1963) whereas I was assuming early-late 2000's. I guess I am behind in the times because I had never read this book as a child, yet many of my friends, as I have learned, love it.
I absolutely loved the book when I read it. Max is such a typical and amusing child, which is why I believe it is standing the test of time. His expressions throughout the book make me smile and laugh, he looks so mischievous as he chases the dog with a fork, speaks back to his mom, and gets sent to bed without any supper. I think Max will be relatable to most children. Every child lets their imagination run wild, and will test their boundaries to see just how much they can get away with. It makes me reminisce back to my childhood days when I did the same things. I never chased my pet dog with a fork, but I have done my fair share of misbehaving and gotten sent to my room too. With such wild imaginations, it is easy for children to get carried away and I think any child reading this book will find Max just as amusing and relatable as I did.
I love the fantasy in the book as well. As Max's room becomes a forest and he sails away to "where the wild things are" the reader feels a sense of adventure as they anticipate what will happen next. This part of the book is filled with the fantastical as Max sails away, travelling for "weeks and days and a year" from his realistic home setting to a new world filled with all kinds of creative and wild creatures. Max is brave when he encounters the scary "wild things" and instantly tame them using a magic trick, becoming the king of all the wild things. After having a wild "rumpus" in his new land he sends the creatures to bed without their supper. This part of the book is one of my favorites. Max, trying to act like his mom brings memories flooding back to me. All children dream of growing up and being just like their mom or dad. When playing "house" and "barbies" when I was little, I would always pretend to be my mom - she was the smartest person I knew and I wanted to be just like her.
The ending of the book is especially important. It brings the story full circle and ties up all loose ends. When Max finally got lonely he wanted to be where "someone loved him best of all", that of course being his mommy at home. So he sails back over a year and through the days and weeks to find his supper waiting in his room still warm. This part of the book allows us to see how Max's imagination allowed him to get away and loose his "wildness" in a magical place and when he was ready to be calm he "came back home" to find his supper still waiting for him. I connect to this book because I too have travelled to strange lands plenty of times and have always come back just in time for supper as well! Refrigerator boxes make great space ships that fly to the most magnificent planets you know! ;) I think all children can relate to Max's story and that is why it is on its way to becoming a classic.
Lastly, the illustrations are stunning. Sendak has an amazing ability to capture the most expressive and appropriate emotions on Max's face. They had me smiling the whole way through. I also love the color scheme in the book. Sendak used a lot of pastel colors throughout most of the book, and a lot of greens and blues which made me feel relaxed and calm. Even though the story was about wild creatures, they weren't made to seem scary or uninviting. The texture that Sendak created through his use of line is also quite effective. The illustrations are filled with all sorts of different lines that add texture to the floors, dog's fur, trees, creatures, and so on. I also noticed that as the story starts, the illustrations have borders around them and start pretty small on one page but as the plot develops and Max's imagination creates his magical world, the illustrations get larger and larger until they take up the whole page, then two whole pages, and so on. However, when Max decides to go home again they start to get smaller once again. The technique is quite subtle and I only realized it after reading through the book multiple times. However, I think it is brilliant - as Max's imagination grows bigger and bigger, so does the illustrations, I love that idea!
Where the Wild Things Are is an incredible picture book infused with fantasy. It helps encourage children to dream big, imagine often, and believe that anything is possible.
I love the fantasy in the book as well. As Max's room becomes a forest and he sails away to "where the wild things are" the reader feels a sense of adventure as they anticipate what will happen next. This part of the book is filled with the fantastical as Max sails away, travelling for "weeks and days and a year" from his realistic home setting to a new world filled with all kinds of creative and wild creatures. Max is brave when he encounters the scary "wild things" and instantly tame them using a magic trick, becoming the king of all the wild things. After having a wild "rumpus" in his new land he sends the creatures to bed without their supper. This part of the book is one of my favorites. Max, trying to act like his mom brings memories flooding back to me. All children dream of growing up and being just like their mom or dad. When playing "house" and "barbies" when I was little, I would always pretend to be my mom - she was the smartest person I knew and I wanted to be just like her.
The ending of the book is especially important. It brings the story full circle and ties up all loose ends. When Max finally got lonely he wanted to be where "someone loved him best of all", that of course being his mommy at home. So he sails back over a year and through the days and weeks to find his supper waiting in his room still warm. This part of the book allows us to see how Max's imagination allowed him to get away and loose his "wildness" in a magical place and when he was ready to be calm he "came back home" to find his supper still waiting for him. I connect to this book because I too have travelled to strange lands plenty of times and have always come back just in time for supper as well! Refrigerator boxes make great space ships that fly to the most magnificent planets you know! ;) I think all children can relate to Max's story and that is why it is on its way to becoming a classic.
Lastly, the illustrations are stunning. Sendak has an amazing ability to capture the most expressive and appropriate emotions on Max's face. They had me smiling the whole way through. I also love the color scheme in the book. Sendak used a lot of pastel colors throughout most of the book, and a lot of greens and blues which made me feel relaxed and calm. Even though the story was about wild creatures, they weren't made to seem scary or uninviting. The texture that Sendak created through his use of line is also quite effective. The illustrations are filled with all sorts of different lines that add texture to the floors, dog's fur, trees, creatures, and so on. I also noticed that as the story starts, the illustrations have borders around them and start pretty small on one page but as the plot develops and Max's imagination creates his magical world, the illustrations get larger and larger until they take up the whole page, then two whole pages, and so on. However, when Max decides to go home again they start to get smaller once again. The technique is quite subtle and I only realized it after reading through the book multiple times. However, I think it is brilliant - as Max's imagination grows bigger and bigger, so does the illustrations, I love that idea!
Where the Wild Things Are is an incredible picture book infused with fantasy. It helps encourage children to dream big, imagine often, and believe that anything is possible.
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