Introduction
The two very popular children’s books, “Ten, Nine, Eight”, by Molly Bang, and “Where the Wild Things Are” by Maurice Sendak are both captivating books that keep children’s interest and attention. Both were meant to be read as bedtime stories with “Ten, Nine Eight” written for toddlers and young children and “Where the Wild Things” are for a little older ones.
Main Text
“Ten, Nine, Eight” is a countdown book that depicts a loving relationship between a young child and her parent who eases her to sleep. The text makes readers look around the room to find things to count while gently making the young child relaxed and sleepy. Its simple words are very appropriate for its target readers, as it does not stimulate their imagination too much that it keeps them more awake. “Where the Wild Things Are” is quite the opposite. In the story, the character, Max is a naughty little boy who plays out the fantasies he visualizes in his vivid imagination. The story is filled with action from very strange creatures from very strange lands. Max tries to conquer his fear of monsters by imagining he can overpower them. Older children will definitely enjoy this story, even if it may scare them a bit. The active imagination of Max is something they can relate to, along with his fear of the unfamiliar and strange. While “Ten, Nine, Eight” relaxes children with the predictable pattern of the story, “Where The Wild Things Are” elicits many emotions that may both excite and frighten children before they settle down to a “feel good” ending to send them off to sleep.
Although the stories are very different, both have the elements of a stable and warm home environment. In “Ten, Nine, Eight”, the parent is the key figure that keeps the child feeling secure and loved. In “Where The Wild Things Are”, it is the familiarity of Max’s room and his hot supper waiting for him. Both stories empower children, with “Ten Nine Eight” building a child’s confidence in counting and self-esteem in being loved by a parent, and “Where the Wild Things Are” raising the child’s self-esteem by helping him deal with his fears and conquering them by seeing himself above them.
If the books were to be interchanged to go to the wrong target reader, it will definitely create an impact in terms of cognitive and emotional aspects. Younger children exposed to “Where the Wild Things Are” might be so afraid of the story and characters because of the scary way they are illustrated. In addition, they may not appreciate the message of the story that one can conquer one’s fear using the mind. It takes a certain level of maturity for a child to be able to appreciate the book as a whole. On the other hand, should older children reading “Ten, Nine, Eight” they may at first be attracted to the wonderful pictures in the story, but are likely to be bored because there is not much action going on in the story.
Conclusion
It must be remembered that books must be chosen well to suit developmental needs of children. Both stories deserve the adulation they have earned from literary critics and are recommendable reading material for children.