fantasy

My oldest son, now 15, still knows the words by heart. My four-year-old daughter is learning them. Max is the not-so-bad monster in every little one; the one who is brave and wild and tender and imaginative all at once. He is the King of all wild things--and they love him, but not quite as much as his mother (who couldn't bring herself to REALLY send him to bed without anything to eat at all).

Enough with the PC rants about this book. Another reviewer said he was "snotty" and rude. Give me a break-what child isn't just a tiny bit too lippy on some days. It's life. The thing about the book is that while Max may be a little "snotty," he's imaginative, alive, and still knows that even after being punished, his mother loves him 'best of all.'

The illustrations are beautiful. The story is terrific. And I'm glad to say it was the perfect snuggle-at-bedtime book for every one of my children.

And I have the words retained in memory forever. I'll someday chant them to my grandchildren.

A story on kids in the 90s that appeared recently in the Wall Street Journal compared the top three children's books from two eras: the 1960s and the 1990s. Despite being parent of a three-year-old who loves books, I had never heard of any of those listed as today's favorites, at least not in book form (two were adapted from Disney movies). However, I owned all of the books on the 1960s list, which included, in order of preference, Dr. Suess' classic Green Eggs and Ham, Richard Scarry's Best Word Book Ever and Sendak's Where the Wild Things Are. While not passing judgement on the 1995 rankings, I had to wonder why or when the 1960s choices fell from favor. Where the Wild Things are is a timeless tribute to childhood imagination, a story as meaningful to kids today as it was 30 years ago. Children simply can't help identifying with Sendak's hero Max, the type of kid who amuses himself by dressing in a wolf suit and chasing his hapless dog with a giant fork. Max's frazzled mother calls him a wild thing and sends him to bed without supper. "Wild thing?" As Max broods over the appelation, his imagination takes over. He soon finds himself on a boat to a strange land where he's named king of a herd of wild things all much larger, hairier, and meaner-looking than he ever pretended to be. The whole experience is fun, sure, who wouldn't like all the attention, all the swinging from trees and royal treatment? Still, the boat awaits, and eventually Max takes it back home, to where his mother (now calm) has thoughtfully kept his supper hot. I've read some recent children's books that stand up to the classics, but Pocahontas and Lion King don't quite make the grade. If you haven't already, introduce your child to Max. It will seem like they've known each other forever.

I am almost 7 and my teachre said we have to say why we like a lot of books or do not like a lot of books this summer on amazon and then print out them and give them to our new teacher next year So I am starting with this book.

My dad reelly likes this book because he said it was good when he was a kid. I dont like it. The pictures are boring and the story is not long. My dad reads this to me a lot and I like the books that are newer. New books have pictures that are pretty and the storys are funner and longer. This book has pictures that look old. I wish my dad would read this to himself and let me read something diferent. Nichole