Maurice Sendak (1928–2012)

What the heck even was this book… Following the story of an orphaned pig (the titular Bumble-ardy) who managed to miss all of his birthday parties growing up, Sendak attempts to recreate the wild abandon and hilarity of his smash-hit story The Wild Things, but somehow falls short. He uses similar staging to graphically tell the story, setting up the sad circumstances of Bumble-ardy’s non-birthdays with small scenes before segwaying into a raucious full-page celebration as the party gets show more going, but the narrative doesn’t hold quite the same charm nor do the barnyard cast hold a candle to Max and his Wild Things. Maybe Sendak’s motivation was an attempt to recreate the Wild Things adventure but on a smaller scale and with less potentially frightening characters, but instead he has washed the entire tension and excitement from the story and made it dull. Sorry, Sendak, but we much prefer the original wild rumpus! show less

I wondered after the movie if I'd come back to this and find it a bit too precious, too Spike Jonezy, too obscurely new world order, one of those things you don't have a choice about liking or risk being somehow anti-childhood, shunnable, howling alone to yourself that they don't know that Steve Jobs is monetizing their nostalgia or their whimsy somehow if only you could prove it, you crazy. But nope! This is the best, and Emmett loves it, and I may be a crazy, but you know who else is a show more crazy? My son is, and Max is too, and all the monsters on Monster Island. Let's rumpus! show less

This is one of those books that really shouldn't be as good as it is.... it's rather simple, random, and ambiguous..... but, it's also cute, lovable and endearing. What can I say... I love it as much as my children do. Maybe it's the wonderful illustrations....maybe it's pity for poor Max, who's Mother unfairly sends him to bed with no food.... maybe Maurice Sendak is just a genius. Whatever the reason, it just works beautifully.

When Maurice Sendak, Arthur Yorinks, and Matthew Reinhart collaborate, what do you get?! One of the most uniquely humorous and slightly off picture books you may ever find. In this macabre rendition of “Are you my mommy?”, a young boy, reminiscent of Sendak’s boy in “Where the Wild Things Are”, searches room after room desperately calling out “Mommy”, only to be greeted by various monsters and ghouls. The illustrations are distinctively Sendak’s while the paper engineering show more can be non- other than Reinharts. The intricate pop-ups coupled with the gently frightful illustrations makes for a fun romp during the Halloween season, or anytime you’re in the mood for a scare! ***I just can't wait until a patron finds the topless woman on the "mummy" page! show less