Maurice Sendak changed the lives of many children–his books, like “Where the Wild Things Are” fostered the vibrant imaginations of kids and adults everywhere. So, you know it’s an exciting thing when a new book of his is randomly discovered.
Lynn Caponera, president of the Maurice Sendak Foundation, was sorting through the late artist’s files last year, and she happened on a manuscript that the author had titled “Presto and Zesto in Limboland.” It co-authored by Sendak and Arthur Yorinks. Caponera ended up scanning it and e-mailed it to Michael di Capua, Sendak’s editor and publisher, who was shocked, but thrilled:
“I read it in disbelief. What a miracle to find this buried treasure in the archives. To think something as good as this has been lying around there gathering dust.”
The illustrated book was also created in conjunction with a London Symphony Orchestra performance of Leoš Janáček’s Rikadla, a 1927 composition that “set a series of nonsense Czech nursery rhymes to music,” according to Publisher’s Weekly. Michael di Capua Books/HarperCollins plans to publish the book in fall 2018.
Yorinks said the pair “just forgot it,” because of their various projects, although he is extremely excited the book is finally being published, saying:
“The memory of writing it originally flooded back in a wonderful kind of way. We always had a lot of laughs for two really depressed guys.”
Can’t wait to read it–and buy it as a gift.
Watch Kveller’s tribute to Sendak below!
