Pete the Cat and His Four Groovy Buttons

Rocking in My School Shoes

I Love My White Shoes

Pete the Cat Saves Christmas

Pete the Cat Saves Christmas – with Kids!

Bedtime for Chickies Song

Pottytime for Chickies Song

Little Blue Truck Audio

Goodnight Little Blue Truck Audio

Little Blue Truck Leads The Way Audio

You may be familiar with Maurice Sendak’s books like Where the Wild Things Are or Outside Over There, but do you remember reading In the Night Kitchen? Just over 10 years after the prolific author's passing, we are returning to his 1970s dreamscape of a picture book. In the Night Kitchen offers a dazzling portrait of creativity and the expansive imaginations of children contending with an adult world.

In this episode, besides stirring about in the needless controversy that often surrounds Maurice Sendak’s classic, In the Night Kitchen, we talk with two picture book authors influenced by the master author and illustrator’s work. Author and Illustrator, Sergio Ruzzier describes the influence Sendak had on his career and books, including Fish and Sun and Fish and Wave. And Author and Illustrator, Antionette Portis, reflects on the revelatory impact of Sendak’s books on children’s literature, the human experience, and her own books, Not A Box, Not a Stick, and A Penguin’s Story.

To learn more about Maurice Sendak, Sergio Ruzzier, or Antionette Portis’ books, visit harpercollins.com/blogs/authors/maurice-sendak
harpercollins.com/blogs/authors/sergio-ruzzier
harpercollins.com/blogs/authors/antionette-portis

Do you have a story about how a classic book changed your life? Tweet @readingpod or email us at readingpod@harpercollins.com. Learn more at rememberreading.com. And, leave us a review on Apple Podcasts.

[1:01] Sergio and Antionette identify the fragments of American culture floating through Sendak’s In the Night Kitchen.

[4:38] Still a point of contention, when In the Kitchen was released controversy erupted in the U.S. due to the main character, Mickey’s nudity.

[7:34] Sergio’s fourth-grade drawing of a monster had a similar censorship issue when it was included in a Jon Scieszka compilation.

[8:21] Antionette reminds us that Sendak felt insulted when people referred to his work as kiddie books.

[8:59] Like most adults and children, Sergio deeply felt the emotional complexities of Sendak’s words and pictures. As a visual storyteller, he was later invited to join the Sendak Fellowship.

[12:18] Antionette was also invited to be a part of the Sendak Fellowship’s inaugural class in 2010. She describes the experience.

[12:57] Antionette’s books, Not a Box and Not a Stick are a celebration of the imaginative lives of children.

[17:23] Sergio’s Fish and Sun, Fish and Wave, and his third book in the series, Fish and Worm, were inspired by the narrative art of his heroes and reflect his desire to have children think for themselves.

[22:43] Sergio was asked to lend his visually-mesmerizing illustrative abilities to Roar Like a Dandelion by the late Ruth Krauss.

[25:05] Edna, the main character in Antionette’s A Penguin’s Story, is on a spiritual search to find meaning in the universe, metaphorically.

[27:27] Antionette examines In the Night Kitchen looking to uncover hidden meanings baked into its dreamy joy.

Continue Your Journey:
Maurice Sendak
Sergio Ruzzier
Antionette Portis
HarperCollins
Remember Reading Podcast
@ReadingPod on Twitter

Shareables:

“I didn't set out to cause a scandal. I set out to do a very particular work where he had to be naked in order to confront a particular dream he was in. You don’t go into a dream wearing Fruit of the Loom underwear or PJs.” — Maurice Sendak, author of In the Night Kitchen

“You are calling for attention if you underline the thing you want to hide. It’s not going to work. It’s actually funny.” — Sergio Ruzzier, author of Fish and Sun

“He [Sendak] really felt insulted that people called his books kiddie books. ‘Cause he’s like, I make books for humans, and if children like them that's great.” — Antionette Portis, author of Not a Box

In The Night Kitchen (ft. Sergio Ruzzier & Antionette Portis)

Cheep, cheep, cheep! The Chickies are back – and hungry – in their third board book. 

Dinnertime with Chickies

A Horse Named Sky Sample

The Scarlet Veil Sample

Let the wild rumpus start—Where the Wild Things Are is turning sixty with an all-new digital audio edition narrated by Michelle Obama! Maurice Sendak's Caldecott Medal-winning picture book has become one of the most highly acclaimed and best-loved children's books of all time.

Where The Wild Things Are - Michelle Obama Audio Sample

Names reveal generational ties and histories, weaving an intricate tale of the past. Names—and correctly saying them—are important. Each one carries the hopes, dreams, and traditions of those who came before us.

Six children connect with the reader and proudly celebrate their names and backgrounds: Hé Xiao-Guang, Ofa Kivaha Tupoumalohi, Bijan Hosseini, Nizhoni Yazzie, Xóchitl Luna, and Akosua Acheampong. These captivating kids of Chinese, Tongan, Persian, Navajo, Mexican, and Ghanaian descent also honor their ancestors and cultural histories.

Joanna Ho’s lyrical story, with gorgeous illustrations by Khoa Le, explains how saying a person’s name is the only way we can truly know another.

Say My Name Pronunciations

When twelve-year-old Michael Rosario meets a mysterious boy from the future, his life is changed forever. From bestselling author Erin Entrada Kelly, winner of the Newbery Medal for Hello, Universe and a Newbery Honor for We Dream of Space, this novel explores themes of family, friendship, trust, and forgiveness. The First State of Being is for fans of Rebecca Stead’s When You Reach Me.

The First State of Being By Erin Entrada Kelly

A New Chick For Chickies

Wave your hands!

Tap your feet!

Tug your ears!

From the singer of Les Savy Fav, Tim Harrington, comes this joyful celebration that celebrates every delightful body part.


Nose to Toes, You Are Yummy!

Bathtime For Chickies

Download this original Clark the Shark song for free! Words and music by the author, Bruce Hale, and Petra Kern. Discover more at clarkthesharkbooks.com!

Original Song! Clark the Shark: Afraid of the Dark

Big Chickie, Little Chickie

River Rose Lullaby by Kelly Clarkson

Listen to  an original song by Grammy winner Tim Kubart, based on his new picture book Oopsie-do!

Oopsie-do!  by Tim Kubart

New Kid Excerpt

Max Tilt: Fire the Depths Excerpt

Granted Excerpt

Orphan Island Excerpt

Bravelands #1: Broken Pride Excerpt

Endling #1: The Last

Everybody knows the this-little-piggy game—the big toe is the little piggy who went to market, and the baby toe is the little piggy who went wee wee wee all the way home.
 
But what about the toes on the other foot? It turns out none of those piggies is eating roast beef…. One is playing the drums. One is riding a go-kart. One is dancing. One is flying a plane. And one of the little piggies has built a rocket ship and is traveling into outer space!
 
Now that Les Savy Fav’s Tim Harrington has added his own hilarious twist, the game of this-little-piggy will never be the same. 

This Little Piggy by Tim Harrington

HarperCollins Children’s Books is one of the leading publishers of children’s books, respected worldwide for its tradition of publishing quality, award-winning books for young readers. HarperCollins is home to many children’s classics, including Charlotte’s Web, The Chronicles of Narnia, Goodnight Moon, Where the Sidewalk Ends and Where the Wild Things Are and popular series such as I Can Read and Divergent.

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