Jessica H

De Saint-Exupery, Antoine. The Little Prince. English Translation ed. Harcourt, 2000. Print.

                The Little Prince (Le Petit Prince) is about a pilot who crash lands in the Sarah Desert, during his time in the desert he encounters a little print from another planet. The little prince teaches the pilot many life lessons while the prince searches for the secret of what is important in life.

                I absolutely love The Little Prince because the book emphasizes the innocence of childhood. The book is sold in children’s sections, being that it is short, written in simple text, and contains many pictures, this is understandable. However, I think that the deeper meaning of the book will only be understood by adults; it is very philosophical.

                To me, The Little Prince tackles many social issues that were prevalent at the time in which the book was originally written (1971) and are still seen today. His flower is vain, and causes him to leave. The ‘adults’ he encounters are only concerned with themselves; one is only worried about those who come to admire him, another with numbers and things he owns, and yet another is a drunkard. This is pretty intense stuff to cover in a children’s book! I think it is also pretty brave of Saint-Exupery to call out adults for only being concerned with themselves and their possessions, rather than what is really important in life. The even deeper issue in the book is that the prince, with a little help, realizes that he must return home to his rose and take care of her because he loves her. This is a very important message, you must take care of that which you love, and make painful sacrifices.

                I truly believe that everyone should read The Little Prince, this is the second time I have read the book (the first being in French) and I am still in love with it. The book is heart-wrenching and honestly made me cry, not only because of the prince’s innocence but also because of his undying love for his flower and his willingness to sacrifice everything.

                I would like to end my review with a quote, probably the most well known quote from the book:

“ Here is my secret. It is very simple: It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye.”

« Voici mon secret. Il est très simple : on ne voit bien qu’avec le cœur. L’essential est invisible pour les yeux. »