Children do live in fantasy and reality; they move back and forth very easily in a way we no longer remember how to do.
I don't believe in things literally for children. That's a reduction.
I don't believe in an afterlife but I still fully expect to see my brother again.
When you hide another story in a story, that’s the story I am telling the children.
I became a set designer for opera. I'm a great opera buff, I love classical music, and I needed a time-out.
Sendak is in search of what he calls a "yummy death". William Blake set the standard, jumping up from his death bed at the last minute to start singing. "A happy death," says Sendak. "It can be done." He lifts his eyebrows to two peaks. "If you're William Blake and totally crazy.