The Art of Maurice Sendak, by Selma G. Lanes

The Art of Maurice Sendak, by Selma G. Lanes. 1993 massive hardcover. 278 pages, very nice condition.

Maurice Sendak (1928 – 2012) was an American author and illustrator of children's books. He illustrated many works by other authors, such as the Little Bear books by Else Holmelund Minarik, and achieved acclaim with his own books Where the Wild Things Are (1963), the first of a trilogy followed by In the Night Kitchen (1970) and Outside Over There (1981). In 1996, he received the National Medal of Arts. He is considered "the most important children's book artist of the 20th century," who "wrenched the picture book out of the safe, sanitized world of the nursery and plunged it into the dark, terrifying and hauntingly beautiful recesses of the human psyche." This book contains nearly three hundred reproductions of the famous illustrator's work over the years, including finished illustrations, sketches, penned fantasies, and stage-set designs, accompanied by an account of Sendak's life and career.