Plot Summary - Max is a boy who seems to have trouble following his mothers rules. He is sent to bed without his dinner and dreams of a place filled with wild things. He becomes the king of all the wild things and seems to get bored there. He leaves the place where the wild things are to travel back to his home. The smell of his dinner is what awakens him from his time with the wild things.
Personal Reaction - I love how this book actually captures the imagination of a young boy. This book puts me in mind of my own boys who are wild and crazy. There imaginations amaze me just as this book does.
Memorable Literary Element - The story is told thorough the eyes and imagination of Max. There is also a lot of repetition in the verse which allows young students to become more involved in the story. They feel confident when taking part in book talks when repetition is present.
Illustrations - Sendak uses “cross-hatching” within his illustrations. Such a technique uses the black lines within the story to help readers follow the illustrations, which also follow the narrative. Sendak also uses watercolors in his images, which lay under the black lines. The author’s technique and media creates excitement for young readers. The reader is pulled into the fantasy world. The colors are cool and dark.
Review - Children's Literature - Mary Quattlebaum, Sendak presents an image of children not as sentimentalized little dears but as people coping with complex emotions such as anger, fear, frustration, wonder, and awareness of their own vulnerability. Max feels anger at his mother, acts out his aggression in a fantasy land as he becomes "king" of his wild and ungovernable forces, and returns hungry, sleepy, and peaceful to the real world, where his porridge is still hot. This is a well-earned and reassuring happy ending for all children wrestling with human nature's darker emotions. It is also available in Spanish.
Promotion - This is a great book to discuss emotions and we handle a hard situation, this would work well in a primary setting. The young students can relate to Max and see how Max handled his hard time. There could be a "wild thing" day where students come to school dressed as Max or their favorite wild thing. The library and classroom could be decorated with vines to match what Max's room looked like in the book.
Personal Reaction - I love how this book actually captures the imagination of a young boy. This book puts me in mind of my own boys who are wild and crazy. There imaginations amaze me just as this book does.
Memorable Literary Element - The story is told thorough the eyes and imagination of Max. There is also a lot of repetition in the verse which allows young students to become more involved in the story. They feel confident when taking part in book talks when repetition is present.
Illustrations - Sendak uses “cross-hatching” within his illustrations. Such a technique uses the black lines within the story to help readers follow the illustrations, which also follow the narrative. Sendak also uses watercolors in his images, which lay under the black lines. The author’s technique and media creates excitement for young readers. The reader is pulled into the fantasy world. The colors are cool and dark.
Review - Children's Literature - Mary Quattlebaum, Sendak presents an image of children not as sentimentalized little dears but as people coping with complex emotions such as anger, fear, frustration, wonder, and awareness of their own vulnerability. Max feels anger at his mother, acts out his aggression in a fantasy land as he becomes "king" of his wild and ungovernable forces, and returns hungry, sleepy, and peaceful to the real world, where his porridge is still hot. This is a well-earned and reassuring happy ending for all children wrestling with human nature's darker emotions. It is also available in Spanish.
Promotion - This is a great book to discuss emotions and we handle a hard situation, this would work well in a primary setting. The young students can relate to Max and see how Max handled his hard time. There could be a "wild thing" day where students come to school dressed as Max or their favorite wild thing. The library and classroom could be decorated with vines to match what Max's room looked like in the book.