Canadian children’s book author Robert Munsch is getting candid following his 2021 dementia diagnosis.
In an interview with the New York Times published on Sept. 14, Munsch, 80, revealed that he has applied for and been approved for MAID, which stands for “medical assistance in dying” or physician-assisted death. This process was legalized in Canada in 2016.
Munsch, best known for his beloved children’s books like “The Paper Bag Princess” and “Love You Forever,” began considering MAID after watching his brother endure a slow and painful death from Lou Gehrig’s disease. “They kept him alive through all these interventions. I thought, ‘Let him die,” he told the outlet.
Although Munsch is unsure when he will go through with MAID, he understands that he must do so while he is still able to legally consent. “I have to pick the moment when I can still ask for it,” Munsch explained. This timing can be challenging to determine, as no one can predict the exact moment before his neurological capabilities completely deteriorate.
Munsch says his tell-tale sign will be “when I start having real trouble talking and communicating. Then I’ll know.”
Born in Pittsburgh to a Catholic family with nine children, he decided he wanted to become a priest at age 18. He went on to study for seven years before realizing he was “lousy priest material” and that his true calling was to work with kids.
He switched gears and enrolled in the early childhood education program at Tufts University. After graduating, he began working at a nonprofit daycare in Boston’s Jamaica Plain neighborhood, where he entertained children by telling them made-up stories. During his time at the daycare, he got close with his colleague Ann, who would later become his wife.
Two years later, they moved to Canada together to work at the University of Guelph Family Studies Laboratory Preschool.
Munsch’s storytelling talent was unmatched, prompting the school’s director to encourage him to write these stories down and send them to publishers. Despite facing several rejections, one publisher agreed to publish “Mud Puddle,” which became his first-ever book. Munsch continued to write and quickly became a best-selling author in Canada. However, his popularity skyrocketed in the U.S. after the release of “Love You Forever.”
As Munsch explained on his website, the “New York Times” updated its list of bestselling children’s books in 1994 after “Love You Forever” took the top spot with eight million copies sold that year. Interestingly enough, the Times staff was not familiar with the book since it had been published in Canada. However, American children were seemingly obsessed. “Somebody from the Times called me up and wanted to know, ‘Who are you?’” Munsch wrote.
Today, Munsch has authored more than 70 books, many of which feature characters inspired by children he has met throughout his life.