There have been many versions of Hansel and Gretel told and handed down over the years.

HarperCollins recently published a re-telling of the story, this time with an interpretation by the prolific author Steven King, featuring illustrations by the late Maurice Sendak.

King unapologetically took liberty with the original fairy tale from Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm, he wrote in the new book’s introduction. He ran with the idea that all fairy tales are “a sunny exterior, a dark and terrible center, brave and resourceful children,” he noted, but he discarded a few things he did not love.

The new version of Hansel and Gretel incorporates previously unpublished set and costume designs from 1999 that Sendak created for the Humperdinck opera of Hansel and Gretel.

The result is a re-telling of two brave children lost in a dark and dangerous forest in an all-new picture book that became an immediate New York Times best-seller upon its release in early September.

C.H. Booth Library was recently gifted a copy of the new release, along with copies of previously released Sendak titles, through a special connection with The Maurice Sendak Foundation. Newtown resident and Foundation Executive Director Lynn Caponera visited the Main Street institution to personally make the donation. She was joined by friend and longtime Friends of the C.H. Booth Library volunteer Eleanor Zolov for the mid-October visit to the library’s Children’s Department.

CHB Children’s Librarian Lana Meloni eagerly looked through the books, which included the brand-new copies of A Kiss For Little Bear, Higglety Pigglety Pop! or There Must Be More To Life, In The Night Kitchen, and Where The Wild Things Are. All have been added to the circulating books available in the library.

Friends of the C.H. Booth Library will also be given copies to offer through The Little Book Store, Zolov noted.

During the visit with Caponera, Librarian Mary Tichey-Staack pulled the library’s current copy of Where the Wild Things Are. She and Meloni excitedly compared images between the current library copy and the new edition. Tichey-Stack noted fine details in color and texture between the two. Caponera agreed, saying the reissues have been printed on heavy paper.

HarperCollins, which published the majority of Maurice Sendak’s work, continues to publish the reissues. HarperCollins also published the work of Philip Sendak, Maurice’s father; and Jack Sendak, his brother.

“It was a family affair,” Caponera said with a laugh. “He did a couple of books for others, but it was mostly Harpers from the very beginning.”

The Sendak Foundation continues to work in partnership with Harpers, “very closely,” she said. “They are very dedicated to making sure Maurice’s books are the absolutely best materials we can get.”

Meloni nodded, and said, “When you go with a legacy and a legend, you can’t cut corners.”

In an email to The Newtown Bee, HarperCollins Children’s Books Executive Editor Megan Ilnitzki said the publisher is “proud to present these new editions which have been printed in close collaboration with The Maurice Sendak Foundation to ensure that Maurice Sendak’s original artwork has been reproduced to the highest standards.”

An Ongoing Project

The brighter colors in the new editions are in large part the work of a project that began in 2012, shortly before Sendak died, said Caponera.

“Some of the older books, the art was shot with film, like 50 or 60 years ago,” Caponera said. “When everything turned to digital, film was then scanned. But it was degraded by that time anyway, so we are now going back and we are actually reshooting all of the original artwork and creating new files that are then sent to Harpers.”

At the time of his death, Sendak was working with The Stinehour Press in Vermont, “a really great printer,” according to Caponera. Sendak had done hundreds of drawings of Mozart, “all through his life, as a learning exercise,” which were going to be turned into a book, she said.

After Sendak died, the project continued with Stinehour — particularly Stephen Stinehour and his partner, Elviera Pietra — still working with Sendak material.

“He’s a genius,” Caponera said. “He photographs the artwork, and then she goes in and corrects things that over the years have fallen apart. Over the years, some of the art has degraded that much.

“So far they’ve shot probably 30 books which are in the hopper to start going to get printed,” Caponera said.

A Lifelong Friendship

Lynn Caponera is the executive director and head of the board for The Maurice Sendak Foundation.

A former Ridgefield resident, Caponera’s friendship with the late Maurice Sendak started over half a century ago. Caponera was 11 when the children’s author and illustrator moved to Ridgefield. Her brother Peter was already caretaker for the property, and it was the author-illustrator’s puppies that drew the young Caponera in.

Sendak gave his new young friend a job: watching the puppies. She eventually moved onto the property and did additional work for her friend, including modeling for The Juniper Tree and many other titles.

“Every book from 1971 on,” she said.

Caponera moved into an apartment at Sendak’s property when she was 19, and lived there for more than 40 years, until just a few years ago. She was an assistant to Sendak and his partner, Eugene Glynn.

The Maurice Sendak House & Archive is in the home where the author and illustrator lived and worked. It houses Sendak’s art collection and his original illustrations and related materials.

“I’m continuing what I used to do for Maurice, really, which was helping him when he was working on books. Now I’m just helping to keep his books in print, and various other avenues to keep Maurice’s legacy going,” she said.

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Managing Editor Shannon Hicks can be reached at shannon@thebee.com.