Born: June 10th,1928 Brooklyn N.Y.
Died: May 8th,2012 Connecticut
No you haven't stumbled upon an obituary article, but just a few minutes to remember what a truly odd man he was.
I mean this in the nicest possible way, as he is the American story teller that told children 'no lies'.
He felt it was important to be able to relate to them, giving them a voice.
I spent all afternoon familiarising myself with the man and what I knew of his illustrative story telling.
The Sign on Rosie's Door- is a tale straight out of my neighbourhood when I was about eight years old.
If the Rosie in the story book was known to ride down the hill on her Mustang bike with the banana seat/ skate board, only to discover how worlds apart those things really are when you let go of the handle bars........
Heads-up....the seat is for your bum,
Handle bars are for making sure you don't burn-up on re-entry.
If this Rosie had done that, plus all the thing described in his brilliant story, .....he was probably spying on my friend Cathy and I!
Very Far Away- is a story from where even at my age, have not strayed too far away from.
Or indeed as I say this, it feels as though I probably wasn't that odd a child.
Peculiar at best.
Next, was my best memory of his work, was at school, reading 'Little Bear'.
Comfort, pure, unadulterated security.
Sadly, all I could pull up was the telly adaptations that someone had taped off their telly.....in the dryer by the sound of them, then popped them on You-tube.
I have a yellowing paged edition of Little Bear, that I found in a charity shop. It still creates that feeling of safety and accomplishment.
I may have walked to the beat of a different drummer, but I was a damned good reader.
Thanks Mr. Sendak.
Last but not least- Where the Wild Things Are.
My experience of that classic was during my time as a Pre-school teacher.
I loved building the suspense....doing the voices, softly with a hint of mischief, then loud rolling my TERRIBLE EYES!
Then the children rolling them back, because, you never knew.......
One thing for sure, their faces never glazed over and they Always, wanted to hear it again!
I think I may have turned them into suspense junkies.
Again, Thanks Mr.Sendak.
As I heard him say in an interview:
"There is something living underneath it,"
"And you can bury anything you like in it,"
"When you hide a story inside a story, this is what I am telling the children."
26.03.2009
Maurice Sendak on what being an illustrator means to him. (DVD by the Rosenbach Museum and
Library in Philadelphia.)
Beauty, eh?
Love Val X
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