Week 6 Reading Summary

Where the Wild Things Are written by Maurice Sendak

This week I read a children’s literature book called Where the Wild Things Are. It offers a tale of suspense, action, adventure, imagination and fun. The story is about a young boy named Max who is sent to bed without any dinner after making mischief. That night his bedroom transforms into a forest inhabited by creatures known as ‘Wild Things’. After taming the creatures, Max is crowned king of all wild things. He enjoys his time with his new friends, but realises that he wants to be where someone loved him best of all. So he travels back to his bedroom, where he discovers a hot supper waiting for him.

Where the Wild Things Are was first published in 1963 and has been named one of the true classics of children’s literature. The text and the artwork compliment one another, moving the story along seamlessly. The coloured pen and ink illustrations in muted colours are both humorous and sometimes a little scary, reflecting both Max’s imagination and anger. The theme, conflict and characters are ones with which readers of all ages can identify and enjoy. I believe Where the Wild Things Are would be most suited to lower primary students as they can make connections with Max’s emotions, thoughts and imagination. However, the simplicity of the language is deceptive at times and therefore lower primary students may find the text somewhat challenging to read.