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The Fool of the World and the Flying Ship: A Russian Tale (Hardcover)

by Arthur Ransome (Author), Uri Shulevitz (Illustrator)
Key Phrases: corn brandy, flying ship, Fool of the World

4.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (8 customer reviews)

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Editorial Reviews

Review
"A delightful picture-book version of the Russian folktale about the simple third son who, through the magical powers of the Listener, Swift-goer, Drinker, and others, performs the tasks set by the Czar and wins the princess. The handsome illustrations which fill the pages with animation and gleaming colors have a folk character and Russian flavor." --Starred, Booklist
-- Review

Review

"A delightful picture-book version of the Russian folktale about the simple third son who, through the magical powers of the Listener, Swift-goer, Drinker, and others, performs the tasks set by the Czar and wins the princess. The handsome illustrations which fill the pages with animation and gleaming colors have a folk character and Russian flavor." --Starred, Booklist

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Product Details

Reading level: Ages 4-8
Hardcover: 48 pages
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR) (January 1, 1968)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0374324425
ISBN-13: 978-0374324421
Product Dimensions: 10.7 x 9.3 x 0.4 inches
Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds

Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (8 customer reviews)

Amazon.com Sales Rank: #410,669 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)
Popular in these categories: (What's this?)
#8 in Books > Children's Books > Authors & Illustrators, A-Z > ( S ) > Shulevitz, Uri
#18 in Books > Children's Books > Authors & Illustrators, A-Z > ( R ) > Ransome, Arthur

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Inside This Book (learn more)

Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
corn brandy, flying ship

Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Fool of the World

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Citations (learn more)

1 book cites this book:

Literature for Lively Lessons by Sheila Edwards on page 12

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Customer Reviews

8 Reviews

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
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Average Customer Review

4.4 out of 5 stars (8 customer reviews)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Humorous Tale of Magic and Faith with Great Illustrations, May 16, 2001

By	Professor Donald Mitchell "Jesus Makes Me a P... (Boston) - See all my reviews (TOP 10 REVIEWER)

This review is from: The Fool of the World and the Flying Ship: A Russian Tale (Paperback)

The Fool of the World and the Flying Ship won the Caldecott Medal in 1969 as the best illustrated American children's book in that year. The illustrations feature bright colors, subtle shadings, and stylistically interesting pen highlights to suggest outlines and details. The illustrations take you enjoyably into a magical world for a fascinating journey, and greatly add to the pleasure of this traditional Russian tale. The story is build around the theme of: "You see how God loves simple folk."

A family has three sons, two who are clever and one who is foolish. "He was as simple as a child, simpler than some children, and he never did anyone a harm in his life." The parents were proud of their clever sons and disappointed in their foolish one. When the news comes that the Czar wants a flying ship, the parents support the efforts of the two clever sons. They set off and are never heard from again. When the foolish son sets off, he gets the the minimum of support and encouragement.

He soon runs into "an ancient old man with a bent back, and a long beard, and eyes hidden under his bushy eyebrows." The foolish son offers to share his meager food, apologizing to the ancient man. But when he opens his bag, marvelous food appears instead. The ancient man has magical powers and teaches the foolish son how to make a flying ship for the Czar. The ancient man also advises the foolish son to take along everyone he meets on his trip to the Czar's palace to deliver the flying ship.

Along the way, the foolish son meets a most unusual set of people with great individualized talents. As you read the book, you will be wondering what their significance could possibly be. They turn out to be a sort of 19th century X-Men.

The promised reward for bringing the flying ship had been the hand of the Czar's daughter in marriage and a rich dowry. When the foolish son arrives, the Czar's men report that those in the ship are only a bunch of uncouth peasants. As a result, the Czar doesn't want to make good on his promise, so he sets up extreme challenges (not unlike the Wizard of Oz). Using the remarkable talents of his passengers, all of the tests are met by the foolish son.

The foolish son is married to the Czar's daughter, and they live happily ever after. The foolish son then "became so clever that all the court repeated everything he said."

As you can see, the story is also a satire on the people who think they are clever or know how to identify cleverness. They often outsmart themselves. The Czar wanted a flying ship, but would have been much better off making good use of the talents of the peasants who were already part of his kingdom. Also, we are never told what use he made of the flying ship. It appears that he gave his daughter away for a whim. The winning man might as easily have been a terrible person. The courtiers also thought that anyone who was powerful was clever. I laughed aloud several times while reading the story.

Unlike most children's stories for this age group (4-8), this book has a richness of plot, character development, and humor that makes it more like a novel.

After you have finished enjoying the story with your child, I suggest that the two of you have some fun talking about places where "clever" people act foolishly and vice versa. You can help your child see the bright side of much of the nonsense that goes on around us.

Be foolish in providing and seeking out help, and a great bounty of friendship will be yours!

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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Check out the audio version..., December 19, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: The Fool of the World and the Flying Ship: A Russian Tale (Paperback)

Robin Williams made an audio version of this story that my younger brother would replay for hours on end...It's hilarious and engaging, with his obvious talent for the voices...

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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars My Favorite Picture Book, June 29, 2001

By	oddsfish (Winters, TX) - See all my reviews

The Fool of the World and the Flying Ship by Arthur Ransome with illustrations by Uri Shulevitz is easily my favorite picture book. Everything is perfect about the book. First of all the pictures are marvelous. All of Shulevitz's books have good pictures, but this might be his best. The pictures jump off the page with their color and with the humor portrayed in them. The story is, of course, the best part of the book. The story is hilarious with marvelously interesting characters. It also has some good morals like "God loves simple folk." I work in a library, and adults and kids all love this book. I have also seen the book performed for children, and it proved to be excellent for reading aloud. The Fool of the World and the Flying Ship is an amazing picture book and deseves is Caldecott Medal and its classic status.

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Russian Folktale about determination and friendship.
"The Fool of the World and the Flying Ship" has remained to be one of the greatest Russian folktales ever told and has spawn many popular movies such as "The Adventures of Baron... Read more

Published 10 months ago by Kirara

4.0 out of 5 stars Fairy Tale Treasure
So I am a sucker for fairy tales. What else do you want me to do? In true Russian fashion, a practically universal story is made larger-than-life to celebrate the underdog and... Read more

Published 14 months ago by Emily Taylor

4.0 out of 5 stars Moral: Riches make one clever
The story of the fool and his remarkable flying ship is a classic through and through. The classic tale of how a single man is able, with the help of his clever friends, to... Read more

Published on May 17, 2004 by E. R. Bird

4.0 out of 5 stars could be even better
The story is great, if a little predictable. The young fool sets off to find a flying ship and thereby win the princess. Read more

Published on June 16, 2003 by J. Hill

3.0 out of 5 stars A lad finds people with unusual traits and a flying ship.
This children's book is a retelling of an old Russian tale by Arthur Ransome, who had first published the story way back in 1916. Read more

Published on May 15, 1999

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