In a surprise announcement and pairing, HarperCollins has announced the fall publication of Hansel and Gretel, a Brothers Grimm reimagining by horror writer Stephen King, illustrated by late Caldecott Medalist Maurice Sendak. The picture book will be released on September 2, and simultaneously in the U.K. by Hodder Children’s Books.
This new edition of the fairy tale classic will feature art originally created by Sendak in 1997 as set and costume designs for the Engelbert Humperdinck opera of Hansel and Gretel. The project is in collaboration with the Maurice Sendak Foundation, a nonprofit that aims to preserve Sendak’s work and legacy. “We can’t think of a more wonderful, appropriate collaboration than King and Sendak,” said Lynn Caponera, executive director of the foundation, in a statement.
“When I was asked if I might be interested in writing a new interpretation of Hansel and Gretel, ... I was interested,” King said in a statement. “When I saw the pictures themselves, I resolved to give it a try. 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. 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.”
King’s career has spanned more than 50 years, with such classic horror works as Carrie, It, The Shining, and many more. His work has won the Hugo Award, World Fantasy Award, and the Bram Stoker Award, among others. Sendak, who died in 2012, won many of the top awards in children’s books, including the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award, the Children’s Literature Legacy Award, and the Hans Christian Andersen Award for Illustration.
HarperCollins acquired North American rights from the Maurice Sendak Foundation and Liz Darhansoff at Darhansoff & Verrill on behalf of King. The book is edited by Nancy Inteli, VP and publisher, HarperCollins Children’s Books, and executive editor Megan Ilnitzki. Inteli called the book “a timely and timeless dialogue between Mr. Sendak, Mr. King, and Brothers Grimm that transcends time, space, and even death.” And Ilnitzki said, “Much like the oeuvres of Mr. King and Mr. Sendak, Hansel and Gretel champions the undeniable strength, bravery, and resilience of children in the face of the horror and terror of the world.”
