The Little Prince: Sixtieth-Anniversary Gift Edition [Paperback]

Antoine de Saint-Exupery (Author), Richard Howard (Translator) (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1, 2003 | Series: The Little Prince

Since 1943, the wise little boy from Asteroid B-612 has led children and their adults to deeper understandings of love, friendship, and responsibility. The Little Prince is a cherished story, read by millions of people in more than a hundred languages. In honor of its sixtieth anniversary, Harcourt is proud to present this special edition of Antoine de Saint-Exupéry’s treasure, which includes a satin bookmark and presentation page, and comes in an elegant cloth slipcase enhanced with gold stamping and embossing. A must-have edition for any collector, this lovely book is also the perfect gift for those new to the wisdom of the Little Prince and the charms of his rose-and-star-filled worlds.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Antoine de Saint-Exupéry first published The Little Prince in 1943, only a year before his Lockheed P-38 vanished over the Mediterranean during a reconnaissance mission. More than a half century later, this fable of love and loneliness has lost none of its power. The narrator is a downed pilot in the Sahara Desert, frantically trying to repair his wrecked plane. His efforts are interrupted one day by the apparition of a little, well, prince, who asks him to draw a sheep. "In the face of an overpowering mystery, you don't dare disobey," the narrator recalls. "Absurd as it seemed, a thousand miles from all inhabited regions and in danger of death, I took a scrap of paper and a pen out of my pocket." And so begins their dialogue, which stretches the narrator's imagination in all sorts of surprising, childlike directions.

The Little Prince describes his journey from planet to planet, each tiny world populated by a single adult. It's a wonderfully inventive sequence, which evokes not only the great fairy tales but also such monuments of postmodern whimsy as Italo Calvino's Invisible Cities. And despite his tone of gentle bemusement, Saint-Exupéry pulls off some fine satiric touches, too. There's the king, for example, who commands the Little Prince to function as a one-man (or one-boy) judiciary:

I have good reason to believe that there is an old rat living somewhere on my planet. I hear him at night. You could judge that old rat. From time to time you will condemn him to death. That way his life will depend on your justice. But you'll pardon him each time for economy's sake. There's only one rat.

The author pokes similar fun at a businessman, a geographer, and a lamplighter, all of whom signify some futile aspect of adult existence. Yet his tale is ultimately a tender one--a heartfelt exposition of sadness and solitude, which never turns into Peter Pan-style treacle. Such delicacy of tone can present real headaches for a translator, and in her 1943 translation, Katherine Woods sometimes wandered off the mark, giving the text a slightly wooden or didactic accent. Happily, Richard Howard (who did a fine nip-and-tuck job on Stendhal's The Charterhouse of Parma in 1999) has streamlined and simplified to wonderful effect. The result is a new and improved version of an indestructible classic, which also restores the original artwork to full color. "Trying to be witty," we're told at one point, "leads to lying, more or less." But Saint-Exupéry's drawings offer a handy rebuttal: they're fresh, funny, and like the book itself, rigorously truthful. --James Marcus --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From School Library Journal

YA-This new translation into "modern" English brings a classic tale into sharper focus for today's teens without sacrificing the beauty and simplicity of the author's writing, and the "restored" artwork has all the charm of the original drawings. What appears to be a simple tale of two lost souls-one, a pilot marooned in the desert next to his ditched plane; the other, a minuscule prince in self-imposed exile from an asteroid so small that he can watch the sunset 44 times a day-reveals itself as something far more complex. What appears to be a fairy tale for children opens like the petals of the Little Prince's flower into a fantasy that has lessons for all of us.
Molly Connally, Kings Park Library, Fairfax County, VA
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Age Range: 12 and up
  
• Paperback: 96 pages
• Publisher: Harcourt Children's Books; 60 Anv edition (April 1, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0152048049
• ISBN-13: 978-0152048044
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 7.4 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (72 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #253,306 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

30 of 31 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Compare the new and old translation for yourself December 11, 2005

By A.P.M.

Format:Paperback

The review by "Harbor Bookstore (Friday Harbor, Wa. USA)" seemed to be getting a bit of grief for downplaying the latest translation. Having never read either the original translation or the French version, I found the opinion worth researching. Here is a website from Harcourt that compares the two English language editions side by side, for those like me, who are curious to the differences: http://www.harcourtbooks.com/LittlePrince/compare.asp

I'd have to agree that the Katherine Woods version seems to carry a bit more charm. Richard Howard seems to have made a translation to the exact standards of proper grammer. While that may be a faithful translation of the French words, I could understand the arguement that his translation lacks the poetry from those words.

Decide for yourself.

19 of 21 people found the following review helpful

1.0 out of 5 stars I don't like the new translation at all October 10, 2007

By murt

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

I love the style in which this book was originally translated from French to English. There was a genuine, child-like quality to it that rang true to the books character and that of it's charming little prince. The new translation took me by surprise as I was not aware that it had been re-translated and sadly, the surprise was not a happy one. It just doesn't feel like the same book to me, and tragically, the original translation appears to be out of print now. Why in God's name did they feel the need to fix something that was in no way broken? Ghaaaa! Child-like and genuine has been replaced by rigid and sterile. The Little Prince would weep. :(

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The Little Prince February 10, 2007

A Kid's Review

Format:Paperback

The Little Prince, written by Antoine De Saint Exupery, deserves five stars.

The Little Prince is from another planet where he lives a very simple life. Every day he combs out his volcanoes, waters his flower and watches the sunset. One day he decides to visit earth and has many experiences with what we take for granted. While the story is entertaining and child-like, the message delivered to the reader with each encounter teaches the reader many life lessons. The Little Prince tells about the importance of friendship and real happiness.

The Little Prince gets five stars because it was a great book. The book did not get bogged down with complicated, adult ideas. The book took a simple approach to what really matters most in life. The Little Prince sees the world through child like eyes. He is always questioning people and getting to the main uncomplicated ideas of life. The Little Prince teaches many lessons. The book teaches about love, friendship and true happiness. It also teaches to not take things for granted. The Little Prince is a five star book because it is not only meant to be a children's book, but also an adult's book.

If you like this book, I would also recommend reading The Precious Present by Spencer Johnson. I am a 7th grade student at Harris Road.