Few stories are as widely read and as universally cherished by children and adults alike as The Little Prince. Richard Howard’s translation of the beloved classic beautifully reflects Saint-Exupéry’s unique and gifted style. Howard, an acclaimed poet and one of the preeminent translators of our time, has excelled in bringing the English text as close as possible to the French, in language, … language, style, and most important, spirit. The artwork in this edition has been restored to match in detail and in color Saint-Exupéry’s original artwork. Combining Richard Howard’s translation with restored original art, this definitive English-language edition of The Little Prince will capture the hearts of readers of all ages.
This title has been selected as a Common Core Text Exemplar (Grades 4-5, Stories).
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Answering the question of the week, some books did take me out of my comfort zone. The Little Prince was the last one. Rereading it after so many years opened my eyes to so many truths, some that I knew but never really thought about.
My good short read is The Little Prince. I prefer long, engrossing novels to read, but every few years I pick up The Little Prince and there is always some nugget of emotional wisdom to be reminded of or some insight that I had forgotten. Especially at this time in our country, we could all use a little of the Prince’s wisdom.
A book I have always wanted to read since I see lots of quotes from the book across social media and I’m so glad I did. I read it in a day and LOVED it!
This book had a large influence on me when I was in high school. Just the idea of taking something so common as a rose and seeing it as your rose so special you’d do anything for it is perfect. It doesn’t mater how anyone else sees a rose, it’s yours (read the book and you’ll understand my banter about the Rose lol 🙂 ) there’s so many other ideas that just really hit home and make you think. As an adult I reread the book (many many times) but it really helped me with the passing of mY grandfather last June. I can’t recommend this book enough!
The narrator is a pilot who has crash landed in the Sahara Desert. He is trying to fix his plane. While working, a little prince approaches him and asks him to draw a picture of a sheep. Thus starts the story between the narrator and the little prince. The little prince tells the pilot of his journey from his own planet. The Little Prince’s planet has just him, a flower, and three volcanoes (one extinct), and nothing else. He tells the pilot that it is so small that only he fits.
The Little Prince speaks of his journey to different small planets – all inhabited by just one person (a king, or a business man, or a lamplighter) – playing on the futile aspects of being an adult. Until finally, the Little Prince lands on planet earth. He tells the pilot about his flower – how he discovers on earth there are MANY like her. But a wise fox, that the Little Prince had met (before the pilot), tells the Little Prince that his flower will always be special because HE cared for her.
It is a remarkable little book. A beautiful story, and sweet illustrations, and a very sad yet heartfelt ending. We all three enjoyed it, and I am so glad we finally got around to reading it. If you have never read this book, you really need to. It is a treasure.
3 out of 5 stars to The Little Prince, a French children’s story written in 1943 by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. Have you ever read a book that was translated into your native language and thought, “I’ve lost some beauty and meaning in this version?” That’s how I feel about this book. I read it in English as I cannot read, speak or write French. I know very little about the French, but with a few folks I’ve known, I can align this book with their personalities. Though it’s deemed a children’s book, in America, we’re often a little less willing to give something like this to kids, so it’s probably better for a new teenager to read. It has some pictures as well as story, so it’s somewhere in the middle of YA versus children’s book to me.
As for the story, consider it a moral lesson, an allegory, in how to live life. Comparing adults to children. Imagination to work. Freedom to structure. Why you choose to do something versus being told to do it. The characters are a little too direct or cold for me to connect with, but I do enjoy the conversation the book starts with young adults. It can teach you how to think on your own but also recognize there is a time and place for questioning why versus just doing the task.
I would like to learn French to see if I read something different from the book. But then again, without years of culture and history, it may not have the same impact as it does for someone who grew up in the environment. Anyone from France have a theory? I’d be curious…
‘The Little Prince’ is a book that I recall reading and not understanding in school. Coming back to it all these years later, I realize that the book is not just for children, but also for those who have grown up and left the ‘folly’ of youth behind.
The prince’s naivety is charming, and as the narrator tells his story, the lessons learned are shown to be more mature than some might believe appropriate for a children’s novel. However, the author has masterfully woven the mature and immature together to form a narrative that captivates the reader.
I would recommend this book more for older children, teens, and adults than younger children. Certainly they might enjoy it, but understanding the nuances that the author purposefully put in there would go over their heads.
This is my absolute favorite books. A book that’s meant for contemplation absolutely. I won’t say more, experience it yourself!
Love the imagination of this book.
A wonderful book that has proved rewarding even after multiple reads over the years. It was my favourite book to gift for a long time.
“What’s essential is invisible to the eye…”
Lovely for adults and teens, not for Kids!
I first read it years ago in French, going to the Sorbonne, later got a good translation in America, and recently got a fresh, new translation- the 70th anniversary with a CD reading by Viggo Mortensen. I just love it all over again. Every time it’s surprising and goes to my heart. It is full of wise observations about people and their doings and feelings. It will get to your heart if you stick with it. It seems silly until you really pay attention. Haunting is really appropriate to describe it. PS I’m 76.
Julia Welch
Life-long messages from the book, especially “What is essential is invisible to the eye”, and “It is only with the heart that one can truly see.”
Well, this one is quite well-known translated to several languages. This book is simply written through the eyes of the narrator who begins with a discussion on “the nature of grown-ups and their inability to perceive especially important things.” The narrator becomes a pilot, and, one day, his plane crashes in the Sahara, far from civilization. He has 8 days of water supply and must fix his airplane to be saved. In the middle of the desert, he is unexpectedly greeted by a young boy with golden hair, an adorable laugh, and will repeat questions until they are answered. He nicknamed him “The Little Prince”. Over the course of eight days stranded in the desert, while the narrator attempts to repair his plane, the little prince recounts the story of his life. The story has a somber measured tone in memory of his small friend. According to one analysis, “the story of the Little Prince features a lot of fantastical, unrealistic elements… You can’t ride a flock of birds to another planet… The fantasy of the Little Prince works because the logic of the story is based on the imagination of children, rather than the strict realism of adults.” The theme, as usual with my taste, is about loneliness, friendship, love, and loss.
An inspiring and heartwarming book. Full of wisdom and love.
i like this book to read in every time and everywhere…spend a nice october days with this nice and original book…for everyone…i hope you will enjoy and read it again many times…mmm i loving it i hopr you will tooo….:)
One of my all-time favorite books, which reveals more secrets through each reading.
This book is like a cozy, warm sweater. I read it whenever I am feeling sad, and it makes the world a little kinder.
Arguably one of the most important books ever written.
The Little Prince is one of my favorite books ever! I just love it. My husband got me a deluxe pop-up version of the book many years ago and it rests on a floating bookshelf in the room in which I often write.
It’s a beloved book for a reason. It’s a timeless fable that talks about love, death, and what’s essential and what’s not. It takes us deep into the heart and talks about unsaid things — how we start belonging to the people we love, how we pretend to know about the world as adults, and the nature of the essential and the invisible.
This is a touching, imaginative, deep, lyrical, beautiful book.
Even writing this review makes me feel like I must read it again — I am sure, as is the case with great books, I will find new things in it when I read at this stage of my life.
Highly, highly recommend. A book to cherish and love.