I Wanted To Be Acknowledged As An

Once A Little Boy Sent Me A Charming Card With A Little Drawing On It. I Loved It. I Answer All My Children’s Letters — Sometimes Very Hastily — But This One I Lingered Over. I Sent Him A Card And I Drew A Picture Of A Wild Thing On It. I Wrote, “dear Jim: I Loved Your Card.” Then I Got A Letter Back From His Mother And She Said, “jim Loved Your Card So Much He Ate It.” That To Me Was One Of The Highest Compliments I’ve Ever Received. He Didn’t Care That It Was An Original Maurice Sendak Drawing Or Anything. He Saw It, He Loved It, He Ate It.

Do Parents Sit Down And Tell Their Kids Everything? I Don't Know. I Don't Know. I've Convinced Myself - I Hope I'm Right - That Children Despair Of You If You Don't Tell Them The Truth.

Herman Melville Said That Artists Have To Take A Dive And Either You Hit Your Head On A Rock And You Split Your Skull And You Die … Or That Blow To The Head Is So Inspiring That You Come Back And Do The Best Work That You Ever Did. But You Have To Take The Dive And You Do Not Know What The Results Will Be.

I Have Been Doodling With Ink And Watercolor On Paper All My Life. It's My Way Of Stirring Up My Imagination To See What I Find Hidden In My Head. I Call The Results Dream Pictures, Fantasy Sketches, And Even Brain-sharpenin G Exercises.

Sendak Is In Search Of What He Calls A "yummy Death". William Blake Set The Standard, Jumping Up From His Death Bed At The Last Minute To Start Singing. "a Happy Death," Says Sendak. "it Can Be Done." He Lifts His Eyebrows To Two Peaks. "if You're William Blake And Totally Crazy.