JONATHAN COTT is a contributing editor at Rolling Stone and has written for The New York Times and The New Yorker. He is the author of eighteen books, including Pipers at the Gates of Dawn: The Wisdom of Children's Literature and,most recently, Days That I'll Remember: Spending Time with John and Yoko. He collaborated with Maurice Sendak on the book Victorian Color Picture Books, and he is the editor of Beyond the Looking Glass: Extraordinary Works of Fairy Tale and Fantasy.He lives in New York City.
"The book is an inventive, intelligent pleasure, a collaborative
close reading that is serious and loving. I wish there were more
criticism like it."
—Christine Smallwood, Harper's
“Cott's thoughtful questions include quotes from luminaries ranging
from Homer to Rumi…. With minimal redundancy, the voices culminate
to illuminate an extraordinarily rich picture book, provide fresh
insight into human needs, and inspire appreciation for the rewards
of looking closely.”
—Kirkus Starred Review
"Fascinating and compellingly readable as all of this is, there
remains something ineffable about Sendak’s work, for, yes, when all
is said and done, there is a mystery there, one that Cott conveys
beautifully.
—Booklist Starred Review
"Cott approaches Sendak from virtually every angle, making this a
remarkably complete picture of a complex and dynamic oeuvre."
—Publishers Weekly
“What makes this volume worth reading… are Cott’s genuinely
thoughtful insights into his subject’s work, and Sendak’s own wise,
sometimes cantankerous musings about the relationship between words
and pictures in illustrated books; the artists who inspired him
(including Mozart, Melville, Blake and Emily Dickinson); and the
kinetic dynamic between his life and art… [Cott] provides an
illuminating window into the creative process — and the countless
inspirations, influences, ideas and serendipitous encounters that
fed into the creation of this work of art.”
—New York Times
"[Jonathan Cott] enlists the help of an art historian, a Jungian
analyst, a Freudian analyst, and the playwright and screenwriter
Tony Kushner, a close friend of Sendak's. Their perspectives on
Sendak's work, juxtaposed with Mr. Cott's own exchanges with the
artist, illuminate Sendak's books and psyche to remarkable effect.
Enriched throughout with images of Sendak's art, the book will be
catnip for those who already admire him. Non-enthusiasts who never
warmed to his more discomfiting books as children or, as adults, to
either his work or his irascible manner may find themselves
surprised, sympathetic and enchanted. . . In this riveting account
of Sendak's vision, Mr. Cott captures the pain and the glory of the
creative process: moments of soaring grandiosity and times of
grinding struggle, of words and images that won't come or that come
in the wrong way, 'It is through fantasy that children achieve
catharsis,' Sendak said. Adults do too. Sendak himself was proof of
it."
—Wall Street Journal
"Cott seamlessly interweaves readings of Sendak's working process
and final products, allowing them to reciprocally illuminate each
other: The "companion guides" are used deftly to open possibilities
without dogmatism. Images from Sendak's books are reproduced in
profusion. Poring over them is a pleasure in itself. Poring over
them in this company profoundly deepens our appreciation of the
power of art to help us bravely face our monsters, transform them
and emerge ourselves transformed."
—Star Tribune
Ask a Question About this Product More... |