Where the Wild Things Are

WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE was one of the first children's books to depict the sometimes subversive inner mind of a child. A seemingly straightforward tale about monsters, the story allows readers to deal with their fears of the unknown. Wearing a wolf suit and acting like a wild child, a boy named Max gets so out of control that his mother sends him to bed without his supper. That night Max laughs with delight as his room is transformed into a land inhabited by wild things--monsters almost as wild as Max himself. At first, the monsters try to scare Max, but, using a magic trick to conquer them, he becomes their king. Although Max eagerly participates in the creatures' "wild rumpus," he eventually returns home--where he finds his dinner, still hot, waiting for him in his bedroom. Although some found the jewel-toned, crosshatched pen-and-ink illustrations too frightening for children, WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE was selected by the New York Times Book Review as one of the Best Illustrated Children's Books of 1963, and it also won the 1964 Caldecott Medal.