HarperCollins Children’s Books will release a previously unpublished children’s book by author and illustrator Maurice Sendak, the press announced in a news release.
Sendak’s Ten Little Rabbits is coming next year, more than six decades after Sendak’s Where the Wild Things Are first hit bookstore shelves, and more than 10 years after the legendary writer and artist died at 83.
Ten Little Rabbits follows Mino, a young boy with a magical hat that produces “ten rambunctious hippity hoppity bunnies.” The book was issued as a tiny pamphlet for a museum fundraiser in 1970, but has never before been published as a book.
Sendak, one of the world’s most beloved creators of children’s literature, was best known for Where the Wild Things Are, his hugely influential 1963 book. It was recently named the greatest children’s book of all time by BBC Culture.
Sendak died in 2012. In an obituary for Kirkus, Vicky Smith wrote, “Never afraid to plumb the darkness both within and without, Sendak armed us for the world. He led generations through the joys and nightmares of childhood.”
“Reminiscent of his early line work in Nutshell Library and A Hole Is to Dig, this picture book showcases what made Sendak such a great artist—understanding what makes a child laugh, what engages them, and what makes them come back to a book again and again,” HarperCollins said. “Prepare to be dazzled in this magical picture book by this award-winning, world-renowned author and artist.”
Ten Little Rabbits is scheduled for publication on Feb. 6, 2024.
Michael Schaub, a journalist and regular contributor to NPR, lives near Austin, Texas.
