Le Petit Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupery // This is Not a Kid's Book. This is For Everyone.

Tuesday 21 February 2017
Le Petit Prince, by Antoine de Saint-Exupery
Publication: April 6, 1943
Genre: Kids/YA/Adult, Fantasy
Pages: 87
Format: Paperback
Source: Borrowed
Rating: 

Moral allegory and spiritual autobiography, The Little Prince is the most translated book in the French language. With a timeless charm it tells the story of a little boy who leaves the safety of his own tiny planet to travel the universe, learning the vagaries of adult behaviour through a series of extraordinary encounters. His personal odyssey culminates in a voyage to Earth and further adventures.

My Thoughts:

I speak *pretty fluent* French, and I read Le Petit Prince in French for my class, but I am an incredibly lazy person who just had to write a huge French paper so... I'm just going to write this review in English for time's sake. And for your understanding's sake. Before anything, Y'ALL NEED TO LEARN THE FRENCH LANGUAGE. It's beautiful and I can imagine that the diction and language used in the French version of this exceptional novel is much better and more deep than the English version. BEFORE EVERYTHING AND ANYTHING POSSIBLE, let's get this straight: every single soul on this planet needs to head to their library, online, Kindle, local bookstore—whatever, and pick up a copy of Antoine de Saint-Exupery's The Little Prince. All of our hearts and minds depend on this kind of feel-good story that is so much more than what is literally written.

You can read The Little Prince in two ways: a literal way and a contextual way. Both of these methods of reading are just SO SO SO enjoyable. And that's the reason why this glorious 87-paged novel is studied by both children and adults. I looked at the novel both ways and it was phenomenal. Once you reach the ending you'll discover that there is more to the book than what us readers can even imagine. And then comes in the concept of adults versus children, which was explained amazingly.

This is a story that will always stay with me. I feel that the Little Prince is somewhere up in the stars, watching his readers and guiding them through life. I guess you can now tell that I have some sort of spiritual connection to him and it's true. Saint-Exupery created this story wonderfully, but I can't happen to wonder if this is a true story, if there really was a little prince. (I understand that Antoine's plane crashed during World War Two, but there must have been more to that story. This is not a hallucination).

I read this over a course of a few weeks because we spent a lot of time in class analyzing everything, doing projects and doing short quizzes to test our knowledge, which I despised. 






Le Petit Prince is unlike any classic you'll ever read. It is easy to read, though it holds a meaning that will stun you for days or even months to the point that you'll feel eager to read it all over again to discover a whole other meaning.

2 comments :

  1. I have read this one and I also absolutely loved it. I love how accessible it is to all ages, and how relevant the messages are that the book gives. You learn so many moral life lessons, and it is just so adorable as well. So memorable <3

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    Replies
    1. Aw yes, I completely agree! Every single person can find a message that is different than someone else's. I wish that I could read this over and over again and still find that it feels brand new to me, you know? :) The film version is just as adorable, too!

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