Maurice Sendak (1928 – 2012) was a Jewish-American author, whose childhood was deeply affected by the loss of family in the Holocaust. His 1963 book Where the Wild Things Are is extremely famous, but I’ve always preferred his wonderfully comforting Chicken Soup with Rice, which was published in 1962 as part of the four little books of ‘The Nutshell Library’. It is a book of simple rhymes that take the reader through the months of the year, each one connected to the pleasure of eating chicken soup with rice in some exotic locale or in extreme conditions. The little boy and his friends are able to enjoy their soup in amazing places every month of the year. Here’s one fabulous verse:
Chicken Soup with Rice
Chicken soup is a staple of Jewish cooking, something offered for comfort and nourishment. Surely Sendak drew on his Jewish heritage as he wrote this book? Here’s my delicious recipe for it:
1 tbsp oil
1 onion, finely chopped
3 large carrots, diced
1 stalk celery, diced
1 tsp chopped garlic
1 tsp dried parsley
½ tsp thyme
5 cups of chicken stock
2 uncooked chicken breasts
1 cup brown rice (rinsed)
Salt and Pepper
½ cup evaporated milk
In a large pot, heat oil. Add onion, carrots and celery, stir until onion begins to turn golden. Add herbs and cook 1 minute. Add stock, chicken, rice, and seasonings. Stir and bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer, cover and cook for 30 minutes, stirring often.
Remove chicken from pot and shred it. Add it to pot and add evaporated milk. Serve.
Really Rosie is a musical with a book and lyrics by Maurice Sendak and music by Carole King. The animated show follows a typical summer day in the life of the Nutshell Kids, a group of several neighbourhood friends from The Nutshell Library books, and Rosie and Kathy from The Sign on Rosie’s Door. Rosie, the self-proclaimed sassiest kid on her block of Brooklyn’s Avenue P, entertains everyone by directing and starring in a movie based on the exciting, dramatic, funny (and slightly exaggerated) story of her life.
A half-hour animated television special aired on 19 February 1975. It was directed by Maurice Sendak with Carole King voicing the title character. You can view it in full here: Really Rosie 1975 TV special
Selected links for relevant websites, books, movies, videos, and more. Some of these links lead to protected content on this website, learn more about that here.
Chicken Soup with Rice by Maurice Sendak
Nutshell Library by Maurice Sendak
Where The Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak
Susannah Fullerton: Maurice Sendak is born
Susannah Fullerton: Where the Wild Things Are is published
Susannah Fullerton: Maurice Sendak dies
Maurice Sendak: a life in pictures
Maurice Sendak Foundation
Carole King: Chicken Soup with Rice