
Where The Wild Things Are
Maurice Sendak(Author)
Bodley Head Children's Books (Publisher)
Published on 1. January 1967
Book
Hardback
48 pages
978-0-370-00772-4 (ISBN)
Description
When Max puts on his wolf suit and makes mischief, his mother calls him 'Wild Thing' and sends him to bed without any supper. Alone in his room, Max enters a magical world and sets sail across the sea to the place where the wild things are. The wild things roar their terrible roars and gnash their terrible teeth and roll their terrible eyes and show their terrible claws . . .
But Max tames the wild things and is made their king.
Will he ever want to go home?
But Max tames the wild things and is made their king.
Will he ever want to go home?
Reviews / Votes
Sendak is the daddy of them all when it comes to picture books - the words, the rhythm and the design are all wonderful. * S Magazine, Sunday Express * The greatest picture book ever written -- Chris Riddell, Children's Laureate * Guardian * Gripping, ingenious and uplifting . . . a shrewd, fierce, healing book -- Boyd Tonkin * Independent * A timeless masterpiece. The illustrations, the fabulous monsters, the beautiful cross-hatching, and the surreal, dreamlike narrative beckons the reader to join the adventure. The themes are perfect for inspiring discussion on confronting life's scary things, mastering your fears and being brave, letting off steam, saying goodbye, and the comfort of returning home safe and sound * Child Education * An almost-perfect picture book stuffed with mischief, magic and meaning . . . Has a haunting depth that makes bedtime reading thrilling, a little scary, but also empowering * Junior * This is my never-fail picture book. The text is very short, but utterly perfect, the illustrations are tremendous -- Jacqueline Wilson The key to Sendak's success, and to the continuing hipness of his book, is that it's hero is not a good child . . . the book is, in fact, extraordinarily childcentric, a book written for and about terrible infants, the kind of terrible infants that most children really are and that all adults remain for much of the time -- David Baddiel * The Times * One of the best picture books ever - so it is not at all surprising (though lucky for me) that the wild things are in a very wild wood. The story follows the pattern of the old fairytales: the young hero goes into a forest that is genuinely frightening. But thanks to his own courage and independence, he earns a kingdom and comes home to a hot supper. It is one of the few modern and original children's books. -- Sara Maitland * The Guardian *More details
Edition
Special edition
Language
English
Place of publication
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Penguin Random House Children's UK
Target group
Children/juvenile
Interest Age: From 2 to 5 years
Edition type
Special edition
Illustrations
full-colour
Dimensions
Height: 264 mm
Width: 233 mm
Thickness: 14 mm
Weight
428 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-370-00772-4 (9780370007724)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions

Person
Maurice Sendak was born in Brooklyn, New York. He began by illustrating other authors' books for children, but the first book that he both wrote and illustrated was Kenny's Window, published in 1956. In his lifetime, he illustrated over 80 books, and received many awards, including the 1964 Caldecott Medal for Where the Wild Things Are. In 1970 he was the first American to win the Hans Christian Andersen Illustrator's Medal. He passed away in May 2012.