September 14, 2007 8:56 AM
Where the Wild Things Are - an enthusiastic review for a misunderstood classic
A few years ago, in his Breakpoint column Chuck Colson blasted Maurice Sendak's 1964 classic Where the Wild Things Are as emblematic of the "unfettered rebellion" which eventually gave rise to the counterculture. Pretty heavy, huh?
(Sometimes it's just a little too easy to see why people have a hard time with Christians.)
At the time, I was on assignment for a Christian Parenting Today article called "Story Power" so I had a great opportunity to address Mr. Colson's collossal misinterpretation. I love Where the Wild Things Are and have been reading it to kids for 37 years (Samantha will be 38 Monday, but don't tell anyone, and my adopted Downzer boys are still just 7, 11, and 12 so they still love it). It's a must-have book for any family -- at least any family that wants well-behaved kids. Far from celebrating rebellion, it actually instructs children in the art of taming their emotions.
Here's the real scoop:
Max misbehaves at dinner and is sent to his room. (Max has parents who care enough to punish him when necessary.)
Max sails away to an island full of Wild Things. (Max cranks up his tantrum-a "wild rumpus" with the Wild Things.)Max, "King of All the Wild Things," finally commands them to stop. (He realizes he can take control of his emotions.)
Though the Wild Things beg him to stay, Max sails home again. (He makes the right decision.)
In his room, he finds his warm dinner still waiting. (His parents haven't stopped loving him.)
Tripp and I have always loved reading this book to the kids because of the several pages with no text, where the wild things are dancing around, well, wildly. We like to do Native American-type chanting Ay-yuh-yuh-yuh, Ay-yuh-yuh-yuh for a few minutes before Max tells the wild things to Stop!
According to C. S. Lewis, "A book worth reading only in childhood is not worth reading even then." I agree, and have included a lot of information in The Mommy Manual and Mommy, Teach Me to Read! - on how to choose books for kids.
In the meantime, for more, go here to read the rest of Story Power: Teach Your Children Emotional Intelligence through Great Books.
Comments
I love this book. Have read it to all my kids. It is such a true story to how the mind of a child works.
Posted by: Barbara | September 14, 2007 3:46 PM
My children love that book, too. I always thought the punishment was so severe - no supper for mouthing off! But my kids don't think so. And their favorite part is when Max goes home. I never understood why they liked it so much until I read your take on it in one of your books. Then it made sense. Thanks!
Posted by: Lucy | September 14, 2007 4:46 PM
We love this story. We currently have the Scholastic video from Netflix with not only Where the Wild Things Are, but also The Nutshell Kids and In the Night Kitchen. My daughter absolutely loves these stories and it makes the books more fun for her.
Posted by: Christina | September 15, 2007 10:42 AM
This was always one of my fave books as a child and now I read it to my children. I am excited that it is coming to the big screen. I never realized that people had negative thoughts about it.
Posted by: Alexis | September 15, 2007 6:03 PM
