Maurice Sendak

During all the years I taught preschool and read picture books to the kids one book stood out from all the rest as the most popular. Except for one little girl who was afraid of the monsters, every child loved Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak.

I guess every little kid has misbehaved and had nightmares so they could all identify with the story, which is just scary enough to be exciting but has a comforting ending.

I recently learned that a new book by Maurice Sendak will be published soon. It will be called Bumble-Ardy and is based on something Sendak, who is now 83 years old, once wrote for Sesame Street. Will it be as good ads Where the Wild Things Are? We'll have to wait and see.

I learned about Bumble-Ardy on Nancy Stewart's blog and you can find out more about it by following this link:

http://tinyurl.com/3ockjnw

Where the Wild Things Are

By now you've certainly heard about the new movie based on the classical children's picture book by Maurice Sendak, Where the Wild Things Are. I haven't seen it and may never do so, but I'm pleased that yet another generation of kids will probably want to read the book.

In all the years I taught preschool and Kindergarten children that was certainly the best loved book of the hundreds I read to the kids. One little girl was frightened by the monsters in the book, but she was the only one who didn't love the book and ask to hear it read over and over again.

Probably every child on this planet with a normal family has experienced being punished for misbehaving, having scary dreams, and being reassured of their parent's love. No wonder so many kids can identify with Max.

Expanding a picture book into a full length movie certainly required adding a lot of material not included in the original story and I hope Hollywood did a good job of staying true to the original.