– 55 – A u g u s t 2 0 2 2 Lovely First Edition Of Outside Over There, Inscribed By Maurice Sendak With An Original Drawing Of A Goblin, From The Collection Of Sendak’s Close Friend And Neighbor 64. SENDAK, Maurice. Outside Over There. NewYork, 1981. Oblong quarto, original red cloth, dust jacket. $3000. First edition, presentation copy, of Sendak’s award-winning, “mysterious and richly allusive fantasy” (New York Times), inscribed: “For Edward, So nice to meet you! Maurice Sendak Jan. ‘82,” with an original drawing of a goblin holding a sunflower. In this beautifully illustrated tale about a young girl’s quest to save her baby sister from goblins, “Sendak is again dealing with the complex emotional life of children in the present, as they try to cope with the mysteries of feeling through their fantasies” (Silvey, 586). The New York Times praised the book, along with Sendak’s classics In the Night Kitchen and Where the Wild Things Are, as one of “the great anchors of American experience.” Among other accolades, Outside Over There was named a 1982 Caldecott Honor Book. Bookmark advertising National Reading Is Fun Day 1979 and featuring a Sendak illustration laid in. Book with light foxing along top edges of preliminary and concluding pages, cloth quite handsome. Dust jacket with wear and a bit of faint foxing mainly to rear panel. An extremely good inscribed presentation copy with original sketch. The former owner of these inscribed books was Maurice Sendak’s neighbor, Andrew, from Ridgefield, Connecticut (the brother of Edward and son of Betty). Sendak bought a home and studio in Ridgefield in 1972 with his longtime partner, Eugene Glynn, and lived there until his death. Andrew first encountered Sendak in 1975 during one of his daily dog walks. (Sendak owned many dogs throughout his life, and they often starred in his books.) Andrew was immediately taken with Sendak, who reminded him of his recently deceased father. One day, Andrew called Sendak at home and asked if he could join him on his walks. Andrew and Sendak thus embarked on a 37-year friendship that also included the Andrew’s mother, Betty, as well as Andrew’s brothers. Sendak went on long walks and hikes with Andrew and his family regularly, discussing general life events, opera, and books. He also invited them into his studio to show off works in progress. Andrew’s mother, Betty, was an avid reader and collector and she and Sendak would talk late into the night about books. Sendak offered Betty advice about how to find and authenticate rare children’s books, which she used to build her collection. Additionally, he frequently bartered for autographs (i.e. a cake for an inscribed drawing). The many inscribed drawings, along with first editions, signed books, and other valuable items grew into one of the country’s premier Sendak collections.
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