Maurice Sendak

It's a very sad day today in Libraryland. Beloved author/illustrator Maurice Sendak passed away at the age of 82. I met him when I was about 9 years old. My mother and I waited for hours in the rain at a book signing event in New Haven. When it was finally my turn, he took my well-worn copy of Where the Wild Things Are and scraped off the ice cream and candy drippings that were embedded in the cover. Then he drew a picture of a wild thing for me with the note "Becky-Boo!"

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

Mr. Sendak lived in Connecticut near my old library. I had a couple of nice phone conversations with his partner regarding artwork for the library. Mr. Sendak was very generous and replaced the pieces which were destroyed in a fire.

Sendak, Maurice. Alligators All Around: An Alphabet. New York: Harper & Row, 1962. Print.

Alligators All Around is my all-time favorite alphabet book. It is one of the few alphabet books that incorporates verbs. For example, H = Having headaches, I = Imitating Indians . . . M = Making macaroni, N = Never napping, P = Pushing people, etc.

Pay tribute to this great author/illustrator by visiting your local library and checking out his books. Don't have a library card? No problem! Just bring your photo i.d. and you should get one for free right on the spot.

Marc's birthday is just around the corner . . .

Here are some of my favorite books about birthdays:

Seuss. (1959). Happy birthday to you! New York: Random House.

Minarik, E. H., & Sendak, M. (1957). Little bear. An I can read book. New York: Harper.

Wells, R. (1997). Bunny money. New York: Dial Books for Young Readers.

Osa, N. (2003). Cuba 15: A novel. New York: Delacorte Press.

(This one is a Pura Belpré Honor Book)

Hoban, R., & Hoban, L. (1968). A birthday for Frances. New York: Harper & Row.

Graham, B. (2005). Oscar's half birthday. Cambridge, Mass: Candlewick Press.

Waber, B. (1966). Lyle and the birthday party. Boston: Houghton Mifflin.

Markoe, M. (2003). It's my f--ing birthday: A novel. New York: Villard.

(This one is for grown-ups, obviously.)

Sick books

In honor of my head cold, here are some good children's books about being sick:

Taylor-Butler, Christine, and Carol Koeller. Ah-Choo. My first reader. New York: Children's Press, 2005.

Hest, Amy, and Anita Jeram. Don't You Feel Well, Sam? Cambridge, MA: Candlewick Press, 2002.

Yolen, Jane, and Mark Teague. How Do Dinosaurs Get Well Soon? New York: Blue Sky Press, 2003.



Wells, Rosemary. Felix Feels Better. Cambridge, Mass: Candlewick Press, 2001.

Rylant, Cynthia, and Suçie Stevenson. Henry and Mudge Get the Cold Shivers: The Seventh Book of Their Adventures. New York: Bradbury Press, c, 1989.

Maccarone, Grace, and Betsy Lewin. I Have a Cold. Hello reader!. New York: Scholastic, 1998.

Hurd, Edith Thacher, and Clement Hurd. Johnny Lion's Bad Day. An I can read book. New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 2001.


Rostoker-Gruber, Karen, and Paul Rátz de Tagyos. Rooster Can't Cock-a-Doodle-Doo. New York: Dial Books for Young Readers, 2004.

Rader, Laura. Who'll Pull Santa's Sleigh Tonight? [New York]: HarperCollins Publishers, 2003.

They say that the best thing to take for a cold is a nap, but I'm going to try some Jewish penicillin, too.

Sendak, Maurice. Chicken Soup with Rice: A Book of Months. [New York]: HarperCollins, 1990.

ps. If you like Carole King and Maurice Sendak, you will love the soundtrack to this wonderful story:

pps. Click here for a sneak preview.

First books

When I was a little kid, these were my favorite books:

Guilfoile, Elizabeth, and Mary Stevens. Nobody Listens to Andrew. Chicago: Follett Pub. Co, 1957.

Minarik, Else Holmelund, and Maurice Sendak. Little Bear. An I can read book. New York: Harper, 1957.

De Paola, Tomie. Fight the Night. Philadelphia: Lippincott, 1968.

Foslin, Sesyle, and Maurice Sendak. What Do You Say, Dear? [New York]: HarperCollins, 1958.

Sendak, Maurice. Where the Wild Things Are. [New York]: Harper & Row, 1963.

Autographs

Please allow me to test-drive our new scanner . . .

My Autograph Collection

The 1970's:
Maurice Sendak

The 1980's:

Bono


Chris Frantz

Mike Peters, The Alarm

Marty Willson-Piper, The Church