The Hobbit Illustrated by Maurice Sendak?

[Voronwë the Faithful]

I found this interesting article at TORN about an apparent proposal to have Sendak, the author and illustrator of the great children's book Where the Wild Things Are.

‘The Hobbit’ illustrated by Maurice Sendak? The 1960s masterpiece that could have been

It is an interesting concept, but I'm not surprised that it did not work out. Here is the sample illustration they give:



A very interesting picture, but not very accurate to what Tolkien wrote, contrary to what the author of the article says. "Notice the heavy crosshatching used to weigh down a world-weary Gandalf contrasted with the open, airy line work that renders the jovial Bilbo." But Gandalf should NOT be presented as weighed-down or world-weary. He is an exuberant trickster in The Hobbit. As Tolkien writes about him on the journey before the adventure with the Trolls: "He had eaten most, talked most, and laughed most." No wonder Tolkien didn't like the proposal! I doubt it was just because of the mix-up between Elves and Hobbits. Sendak does indeed not seem to have carefully read the book. Or he wanted to "reinterpret" it.

[Primula Baggins]

I can see why he objected, frankly. Sendak is a great illustrator and has a brilliant imagination of his own, but that's not Gandalf, and for a lot a reasons.

Maybe it would still have been a great "children's book," but the thought that its success might have led to Sendak illustrating LotR gives me chills. Unless he experimented with a more "serious" style, I just don't see how it would have worked. And it would have cemented in some people's minds (if the thought needed further cementing) that LotR is a trivial book for kids or adolescents, not anything an adult might value.