Sunday 20 April 2008

the juniper tree

I've always known that fairy tales were grim(m) - children in ovens, girls in towers, wicked stepmothers - but they are even more so when illustrated by Maurice Sendak. Installment six in my week's worth of children's book illustrations - The Juniper Tree and Other Tales from Grimm, a queer book, yes queer in the old-fashioned sense of strange or odd.

Sendak is probably best known for his picture-story books Where the Wild Things Are (like) and In the Night Kitchen (dislike). I find these illustrations unsettling.



3 comments:

thunder road said...

Maurice Sendak is probably my top favourite illustator and story teller! Love the line drawings in his work, and the peculiar-ness of his tales.

Unknown said...

I loved "in the night kitchen"! I loved the idea of going for a swim in a milk jug (at least I think that's the right book---it would be a good 25 years since I read it, or was read it).

Anonymous said...

ohmigosh! i just stumbled upon your blog (via vintage detective) and the juniper tree was one of my favourite books growing up! the illustrations are indeed quite creepy, and looking back now the last illustration with the cats remind me of something leonor fini would do (and i think she has!)

have a happy day,
kim