The Little Prince is a short story of a man who crash lands his plane in a remote part of the desert. The man meets a little fellow, The Little Prince, who regales him with his tales of his travels around the universe.

This was a short book that carried a big punch. Although it is often labeled as a children’s story, it is so full of beautiful symbolism. The Little Prince is worth reading once a year.

My favorite tale from The Little Prince’s travel is the story of the businessman. The businessman is busy counting the stars, claiming to own them because he first discovered them. The Little Prince asks him what he does with the stars, and the businessman says nothing.

“I own a flower myself,” he (The Little Prince) continued, “which I water every day. I own three volcanoes, which I rake out every week. I even rake out the extinct one. You never know. So it’s of some use to my volcanoes, and it’s useful to my flower, that I own them. But you’re not useful to the stars.”

There was another quote that I just loved: “I need to put up with two or three caterpillars if I want to get to know the butterflies.”

This book is part of the 100 Books To Read According to the BBC:
https://www.listchallenges.com/bbcs-t...

2025 Reading Schedule
JantA Town Like Alice
FebtBirdsong
MartCaptain Corelli's Mandolin - Louis De Berniere
AprtWar and Peace
MaytThe Woman in White
JuntAtonement
JultThe Shadow of the Wind
AugtJude the Obscure
SeptUlysses
OcttVanity Fair
NovtA Fine Balance
DectGerminal

Connect With Me!
Blog Twitter BookTube Insta My Bookstore at Pango

Written as a children's book, I find myself unable to pin down firmly as to what makes The Little Prince such a universally likeable book, be it children or grown-ups. What makes it the Hotel California of literature?

Is it because most grown-ups secretly love being treated like kids? I think as a grown-up you ought to know better than that. Grown-ups like to be petted around now and then in jest, but that's the end of it. Often, when grown-ups are indeed treated like kids and they're not in the mood, there is a tiny matchstick inside each one of them, an insecure ego which flares up angrily like it has been wildly struck against a matchbox. In my experience, grown ups like to be taken very seriously. Very very seriously.

Is it the clear, simple language? No, it can't be just that. There have been books that have been written with clarity and have been criticized by pedants and pontificating bores for their simplicity. Grown ups like to feel wise and learned by having claimed to read complicated texts that engaged them at an 'intellectual' level. They don't like important things being pointed out to them in simple language, after all they're the know-it-all grown-ups and don't need anybody patronizing them.

Is it because the book is so short and grown-ups are always keen on finishing books real quick? No, it can't be just that either. I know grown-ups who believe that a good book, like a well-mixed drink, must be held between the fingers and tended to lovingly at length to let it get to your head.

Is it the timeless lessons that the book cushions behind layers of delightful story-telling? Is it the sense of wonder that the book inspires in the most cynical, world-weary adult, if not for posterity then for a day or an hour? I don't know, could be, could be. Worthy contenders they are, but I think I'm not still not home.

If I had to lay a bet on it, I'd say everyone adores The Little Prince because we are tired of meeting people from Earth everyday who speak the same dry language of numbers and would love to encounter a sunset-loving, wise prince from the room-sized planet of Asteroid B-612 who talks animatedly about butterflies, baobabs and volcanoes to the child inside us that we've buried long ago underneath the grey tomb of grown-up babble.

Kurt Vonnegut once expressed how laughable a critic taking himself too seriously is in these memorable words,
"Any reviewer who expresses rage and loathing for a novel is preposterous. He or she is like a person who has put on full armor and attacked a hot fudge sundae.”

That is exactly how ridiculous critics who despise The Little Prince are. For The Little Prince is that hot fudge sundae garnished with generous toppings of lost innocence, shared loneliness, deliciously recycled perspective and lessons worth repeating to yourself to keep from succumbing to the unsavoury, contagious disease of adulthood.

To make your job easier, here are some lessons from the book worth remembering and repeating:

"It is only with the heart that one can see rightly. What is essential is invisible to the eye."

"People have forgotten this truth," the fox said. "But you mustn’t forget it. You become responsible forever for what you’ve tamed."

"One only understands the things that one tames,' said the fox. 'Men have no more time to understand anything. They buy things all ready made at the shops. But there is no shop anywhere where one can buy friendship, and so men have no friends any more. If you want a friend, tame me."

"“Grown-ups love figures... When you tell them you've made a new friend they never ask you any questions about essential matters. They never say to you "What does his voice sound like? What games does he love best? Does he collect butterflies? " Instead they demand "How old is he? How much does he weigh? How much money does his father make? " Only from these figures do they think they have learned anything about him.”

First read: August 2016, Rating: 4 stars
Second Read: September 2019, Rating: 4 stars

This was undoubtedly one of the most charming and beautiful things I have ever read! I clearly lived a very deprived childhood (lol) and had not previously read this, before reaching my twenty's, but the brilliance and lasting power of this story is such that it can be enjoyed by both adults and children alike. Indeed, much of the text seemed aimed at grown-ups, rather than the childhood audience this book is marketed at, and their inability to enjoy and devour the beauty that lives in the world. It has a philosophical and moralistic edge to it, which is offset wonderfully by the simplistic writing style and sweet illustrations. It might have come to me late in my life, but this will forever be a firm favourite.

We are all children in adult bodies. Yes we are, don't think we aren't for one moment. The fact that we WERE, indeed, children, is a huge part of each of us. It is possible to shed a few appreciative tears on every page of this book if you entertain the thought that the pilot IS The Little Prince. Maybe you won't think that--maybe you'll have your own take on the book---that's the magic about it. This book is translated to English from French. If you understand and/or appreciate French, the deliciousness of that fact can affect you in addition to the sweet storyline itself. The book won't even take you a whole day to read. Consider honoring the Little You that still remains, and resides within you, and read this salute to childhood, to innocence, and to you. It just takes a 'Little' imagination and bravery.

كتاب لذيذ، شهي، عذب، لامسني في أعمق شغافي، في طفولتي. فتنني وعشقته، يندرُ أن أقبّل كتبي - إذ يجب التحفظ قليلا مع هذه الكائنات - ولكنني قبلتُ هذا الأمير الصغير، وردته ونجمته وبراكينه الخامدة، قبلته في قلبه.

عودوا أطفالاً هنا :)

i'm 29 years old and have read this book for the first time today. and now i think of ten-year-old zoulfa and how this story would have made her sit by her little desk with crayon drawings strewn all over and just Think for a while. she would have drawn the sheep over and over again until she was satisfied she got it right, and she would have vowed never to become an adult. she was an anne of green gables girlie through and through with her worn-out copy her mom bought her when she was just a baby, but she would have thought (and i do too) that these stories belong together.

يقولون إنه من كُتب الأطفال! وأظن أن من يعتقد ذلك عَجَز عن فهم الكتاب. فهو ليس كتابا للأطفال، وإنما هو حُلمٌ عجيب لطفل كبير حكيم! حلم يبحث في دهشة عن حقيقة هذا العالم، ويسخر من شوائبه الزائلة، وممن يعتقد أنه "نضج" وفهم "الأمور المهمة" جيدا! هذا الكتاب ميزان للناس، من يقرؤه يعرف مكانه، ومن قرأه ولم يعرف مكانه، فهو في لا مكان!

أحمد الديب
مايو 2010

تحديث: كتبت مقالًا عن الفيلم المتحرك المبني على قصة الأمير الصغير، وهذا رابطه:
https://eddeeblog.blogspot.com/2020/0...

For a kid's story, this one has rather heavy-handed intentions embedded into quite a sophisticated system of symbols that exists to produce a strong & emotional effect. Like Voltaire in "Micromegas", Antoine de Saint-Exupery plays with sizes & scales, meddles with the allegorical and even plays with time. He knew, like an astute psychoanalyst, precisely which images to use to convey the mere representation of Mortality. Le Petit Prince is the Everyman who has a deep passion somewhere inside of him and only with childlike wonder and awe (he asks questions on top of questions: no matter the degree of absurdity) is he able to show us glimpses of it. Externalizing feelings like only a child can. I find the golden-tressed titular child a very peculiar emblem in the middle of the Saharan desert... an eerie, living monolith (almost an oxymoron when one comes to think of it.) So, kids, let me ask you this one: Are we just placed on this planet so as to remain forever... ALONE?!

One of the books I remember from my childhood that I am still learning lessons from. I can remember reading this book at points in my life when I could not get a clear map of where I was going; it is one of the 'compass' books that always helps me when I am lost.

♡عليك أن تستدعي روح الطفل بداخلك لتستطيع الكتابة عن هذا الكتاب♡

I'm still waiting for The Little Prince to return.

No one is ever satisfied where he is

This book is very intelligently written. Concept is great! I haven't read anything like this before.
This book shows the various types of grown-ups. I liked how these are described. I think this book has exaggerated some facts BUT I enjoyed them all the same.
I really liked the way Little Prince is written. He questions everything he sees or hears. I liked him because his nature is soo much like me. I, also, question everything.

Some of the Facts I Really Liked:
This book tells us how we give soo importance to appearances. We don't believe the facts. We just believe in WHO is telling the fact. Like, this book shows, when a turkish astronomer presents his theory in his own traditional outfit, nobody believes him. But when he changes his outfit to English's and again presents his theory, then everyone accept his theory.
Just like this, some other facts are:
This book shows how some people like to be praised everytime. How some people are soo busy in their hectic lives. How they are just busy in making money except for making friends etc...

In my opinion, Nobody can fully describe this book. Because this book is full of lessons. Almost each chapter has its own unique lesson. So, there is not a proper plot to describe. That's why I just wrote few lessons above. Although there are more.

I would definitely recommend this book to everyone. If you are a firm reader, then you are at the wrong side without reading this book.

My Favourite Lines From Book:
If you were to say to the grown-ups: "I saw a beautiful house made of rosy brick, with geraniums in the windows and doves on the roof," they would not be able to get any idea of that house at all. You would have to say to them: "I saw a house that cost $20,000." Then they would exclaim: "Oh, what a pretty house that is!

To forget a friend is sad. Not every one has had a friend. And if I forget him, I may become like the grown-ups who are no longer interested in anything but figures

One must require from each one the duty which each one can perform


February 3, 2017
January 23, 2020