by Maurice Sendak; illus. by the author 

Michael di Capua Books, 1993 

Image from Out of the Night Kitchen

This book is not your typical Mother Goose adaptation.  In a style somewhat reminiscent of Randolph Caldecott’s Hey Diddle Diddle and Baby Bunting (like Caldecott’s interpretation of Mother Goose rhymes, the drawings include some stark transliteration and the inanimate objects become animated), Sendak weaves two nursery rhymes with his own dialogue and illustrations to create a single story that has a lot to say about society’s shortcomings.  “The dumps” becomes a shantytown full of homeless men, women and children, who are protected later by newspapers with headlines like “Leaner Times, Meaner Times” that bring up issues such as AIDS, famine, and the failing Real Estate market.  The rats are frightening creatures, and the darkness of the subject matter is reflected in the deep blacks, greys and blues of the illustrations. Jack and Guy set out ignoring the “poor little kid,” focusing on their own troubles, but eventually, with the help of the moon and a giant white cat they rescue the kittens and determine to bring up the boy “as other folk do.”  It is a strange and wonderful piece, and the juxtaposition of the dark illustrations with the sing-song rhyme makes it clear just how much discrepancy is created by the social ills Sendak chooses to represent. 

(This review was originally submitted as part of my picture book overview for Materials for Children class)