It's a publishing fairy tale. 'Hansel and Gretel' is reimagined by Stephen King and Maurice Sendak
An upcoming edition of 'Hansel and Gretel' combines the dark and singular talents of two literary giants who apparently never met: Stephen King and the late Maurice Sendak.
HarperCollins Publishers announced Thursday that the King-Sendak re-imagining of the famed Brothers Grimm tale about two lost children in a frightening forest is scheduled for Sept. 13. King's words will be complemented by sketches Sendak drew up for set and costume designs for a 1997 production of the Humperdinck opera adaptation.
The book was initiated by the Maurice Sendak Foundation. King, author of 'The Shining,' 'Carrie' and other horror classics, said he decided to agree to the project after seeing Sendak's illustrations.
' Two of his pictures in particular spoke to me: One was of the wicked witch on her broom with a bag of kidnapped children riding behind her; the other was of the infamous candy house becoming a terrible face. I thought, 'This is what the house really looks like, a devil sick with sin, and it only shows that face when the kids turn their backs. I wanted to write that!'" King said in a statement issued through HarperCollins.
"To me, it was the essence of this story and, really, all fairy tales: a sunny exterior, a dark and terrible center, brave and resourceful children. In a way, I have been writing about kids like Hansel and Gretel for much of my life.'
Representatives for King say he has no memory of meeting Sendak, although King has expressed admiration for the musical 'Really Rosie,' a Sendak- Carole King collaboration.
Lynn Caponera, the Sendak foundation's executive director, said in a statement that she thought King ideal because outside of the Grimms, 'he's the master of scary stories and a wonderful writer to boot.'
Sendak, who died in 2012, spoke about Hansel and Gretel around the time he was working on the opera. In an interview published in the 2003 book 'The Art of Maurice Sendak' he called the fairy tale 'the most profound' of the Grimm canon.
'Generally speaking, most of Grimm is about heroic children. 'Hansel and Gretel' are the most heroic of them all,' said Sendak, known for 'Where the Wild Things Are,' 'In the Night Kitchen' and other children's favorites. "It's the toughest story in the world and people are afraid of it, yet it's famous because it's so truthful.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Telegraph
3 hours ago
- Telegraph
King to swap horse for a carriage at Trooping the Colour
The King will once again appear in a carriage rather than on horseback at this year's Trooping the Colour. The 76-year-old is one of the Royal family's most accomplished equestrians and last rode in the parade as monarch in 2023. However, the King's ongoing cancer treatment forced him to take a carriage at last year's parade and the same protocol will be followed this year. He has been receiving weekly treatment since he was diagnosed with an undisclosed form of the disease in early 2024. He will ride in a carriage with the Queen for the procession from Buckingham Palace to Horse Guards Parade on June 14 after it was judged to be safer and more comfortable for the King. The former polo player is not expected to ride at the parade ever again, according to The Times. The King took the salute in 2023 riding Noble, a seven-year-old black mare presented by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police in a tradition that dates back to 1904. His Majesty prepared for the occasion by paying regular visits to his new mare at Windsor. He rode the horse with remarkable control despite one television commentator likening the mare's occasional skittish behaviour 'as if it was going into the starting stalls at Newmarket'. It was the first time the monarch had appeared on horseback at the event since Elizabeth II last rode in 1986. The late Queen rode the same horse, named Burmese – also a gift from the Mounties – for 18 consecutive years. Trooping is one of the highlights of the royal calendar, drawing crowds from across the country. It features the traditional Buckingham Palace balcony appearance and has marked the sovereign's official birthday with a ceremonial parade for more than 250 years.
Daily Mirror
4 hours ago
- Daily Mirror
POLL: Was Meghan right to share twerking video?
Meghan Markle's twerking-in-labour video has everyone talking - from royal fans to possibly even King Charles himself. Was it a fun, unfiltered mum moment or a royally awkward overshare? Let us know! To celebrate Princess Lilibet's 4th birthday, Meghan posted a video that caught pretty much everyone off guard. It showed her, heavily pregnant, in a hospital room with Prince Harry, dancing and twerking to the song Baby Momma by Starrkeisha. Whether you found it hilarious, relatable, or a bit odd, it definitely got people talking. Some fans loved seeing this personal, human moment - but others weren't so keen. Royal commentator Jennie Bond called it 'utterly bizarre' and says King Charles would've been 'horrified' by it. But what do you think? Was Meghan just enjoying the moment and sharing a joyful memory? Or did she cross a line by going so public with something so private - and what is clearly a little unconventional for a duchess? Scroll down to take our poll. Meghan shared the clip saying: "Four years ago today, this also happened. Both of our children were a week past their due dates… so when spicy food, all that walking, and acupuncture didn't work – there was only one thing left to do!" Former BBC royal correspondent Jennie Bond was left flabbergasted, telling the Mirror: "The hours before you give birth are some of the most personal, intimate and private in the lives of any couple. "And women are perfectly entitled to do whatever they feel like to get through the waiting, and the pain. Giving birth is a serious business, and anything to lighten the mood is welcome. "However - to share those scenes with the world is utterly bizarre and, in my view, takes away all the magic of the moment. I cannot imagine why she chose to release it. Maybe show it one day to your nearest and dearest— but to anyone and everyone who wants to click on it? Was Meghan right to share twerking video? Take our poll below. If you can't see it, click here "I can hear the voice of the late Queen's former private secretary, Lord Charteris, repeating the comments he once made about Fergie: 'Vulgar, vulgar, vulgar'. "If the King has watched it, which I doubt, though he can't have missed the headlines I'm sure he would be horrified. Royalty has to carry with it some measure of dignity." Since sharing the clip many have questioned why she posted it, given the couple's supposed desire for privacy. And Jennie added: "I'm glad they were so happy before the birth, I'm glad Harry was there to support his wife in every way, I'm delighted to hear that he's such a great dad. But they really can't have it both ways. "They can't demand privacy and be so coy about sharing images of their children and then show us all these intensely intimate scenes. And she cannot expect to be treated as if she's royal whilst behaving like a click-hungry social media influencer. "Having said all that, there's no doubt that videos like this connect in a very real way to young people. And perhaps that's what Meghan is trying to do. My own daughter thought the video humanised both Meghan and Harry and was light-hearted and hugely relatable. It reminded her of her own pregnancies and labour and she thought it was rather charming. In many ways, I agree with her. I just don't think it sits happily with trying to cling to the vestiges of being 'royal'." Get Royal Family updates straight to your WhatsApp! As the royals get back to their normal duties after a difficult year, the Mirror has launched its very own Royal WhatsApp community where you'll get all the latest news on the UK's most famous family. We'll send you the latest breaking updates and exclusives all directly to your phone. Users must download or already have WhatsApp on their phones to join in. All you have to do to join is click on this link, select 'Join Chat' and you're in! We may also send you stories from other titles across the Reach group. We will also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose Exit group. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.
The National
4 hours ago
- The National
REVIEW: Martin Luther King drama hits the heights, and a technical low
King calls room service and requests a coffee. A young maid by the name of Camae arrives with his beverage. So begins American dramatist Katori Hall's Olivier Award-winning 2009 play The Mountaintop. If you are – as I am in writing reviews – averse to spoilers, Hall's drama is a tricky proposition. It is necessary, yet possibly saying too much, to reveal that the fictional figure of Camae is not what she seems. The maid is Black, working class, clever, fast talking, flirtatious, irreverent, yet very much in respectful awe of King. As such, this multifaceted character is a brilliant foil to Hall's imagined MLK. King himself emerges – in Hall's characterisation – as a complex combination of traits inspired by both his public persona and what we know of his private biography. Inevitably – given the ever-present threats against his life – he is afraid for his person. His conversation with Camae explores the tussle between fear, on the one side, and determination, faith and a sense of purpose, on the other. Camae's respect for King does not prevent her from invoking Black radicals such as Malcolm X and the Black Panthers, and from airing opinions on the struggle for racial justice that are at odds with MLK's insistence on non-violent resistance. READ MORE: 'Joy, celebration and warmth' of Palestinian art to be showcased at Edinburgh Fringe In one particularly memorable scene, she even imagines a new, radically Black nationalist rhetoric for King. Yet the dialogue between the pair is so deftly wrought, so believable in its humour, affection and growing familiarity that its political dimension never comes close to polemic. The characters' interactions reflect to a considerable degree MLK's well-established 'weakness' where his extra-marital relations with women were concerned. In this, and in other – by turns delightful and anguished – aspects, the play's broad humanism is inflected with feminism. Caleb Roberts (MLK) and Shannon Hayes (Camae) create a powerful and transfixing theatrical duet as they perform on set designer Hyemi Shin's impressive set (a vertiginous rendering of King's motel room). Caleb Roberts Although contrasting in so many ways, the actors generate characters who are in equal measure charismatic and vulnerable, all the better for Camae to guide King through a dark night of the soul and up to the titular mountaintop. Indeed, so spellbinding are the actors that one cannot help but feel disappointed by the needless distraction – in what should have been a shuddering denouement – of very visible stagehands invading the stage in the crucial final scene. This misjudgement on the part of acclaimed director Rikki Henry seriously undermines an otherwise sure-footed staging. The director exhibits a misplaced loyalty to a visual metaphor for which he and his team have been unable to find a satisfactory technical solution. Which is a great shame as, otherwise, this production does excellent justice to Hall's celebrated drama. Until June 21:
