Where the Wild Things Are

Sendak, Maurice (1963). Where the Wild Things Are. New York, NY: Harper & Row.

The story opens with Max dressed in a wolf costume in his bedroom. He is a naughty little boy who is being sent to bed without supper. All alone, he uses his imagination and his room is transformed into a forest and sea. He sails to the land of the wild things and he becomes their king.  The wild things are ferocious looking monsters but Max conquers them all. At the end of all the monster fun, Max becomes very sad and lonely. He misses home and wants to return. Once he is back in his room, he is surprised to see his hot supper waiting for him.

The illustrations in the book are very appealing. It was amazing to see how Max imagined his room turning into a forest and sea. Beautiful and lush greens filled the room. The monsters (including Max) are both humorous and scary. The illustrations take us to Max's magical land of the wild things.