Young Max is naughty, engaging in such mischief as chasing after the dog with a fork. His mother calls him a “wild thing,” and, when he is cheeky to her, she sends him to bed without supper. Dressed in a wolf suit, Max is in such a rage that his bedroom starts to turn into a jungle and a boat appears. He sails to the land of the wild things, which are huge monsters with claws. Not frightened of anything, Max tames the wild things, who agree that he is the wildest of them all, and they make him their king. Max decrees, “Let the wild rumpus start,” and he and the wild things dance in the moonlight, hang from the trees, and generally run riot, until Max realizes he misses his mother’s love. Although the wild things beg him to stay, he returns to his bedroom, where his supper is waiting for him.