Review: The Little Prince - Antoine De Saint-Exupery

The Little Prince
Antoine De Saint-Exupery 
Series: N/A
Genre: Fantasy, Children's
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
Word Rating: Simply Magical
On Goodreads

The Little Prince is one of those books every single person needs to read at one point in his or her life -- preferably at multiple points because this book is one of those books that you appreciate differently at different points in life. I don't even know where to begin with this magnificent work -- there are so many things that make it amazing that it's hard to put them all together in a cohesive review.

First of all, it's written exceptionally well. It's told simply and straightforwardly, and manages to feel magical and thoughtful all at the same time. Our narrator, although an adult, speaks as a child, remembering certain events that happened to him. He remembers these things not in hindsight but as if he was still a child and still living the adventure. I loved the little Prince as a character, too. He was somewhat self-absorbed but in a way that embodied the self-obsessed nature of all children. He asked a lot of questions and didn't understand adults. He got angry at what he didn't understand but little did he know, he was much wiser than meets the eye. My favorite part of this book is the message behind it. The Little Prince explores the mindset of children versus the mindset of adults and challenges things adults often consider sensible. Once, he commented:

 "Grown - ups like numbers. When you tell them about a new friend, they never ask questions about what really matters. They never ask: 'What does his voice sound like? 'What games does he like best?' 'Does he collect butterflies?' They ask: 'How old is he?' 'How many brothers does he have?' 'Hoe much does he weigh?' 'How much money does his father make?' Only then do they think they know him." 

This was personally one of my favorite parts because it highlighted one of the biggest flaws with people today: they are more concerned about how much something in worth than what it has to offer. The book also showed how some adults are not as sensible as they are made out to be. There was the monarch who was too commanding, the man too obsessed with his own self, the businessman obsessed with numbers, and the man who had no time to enjoy his days. There was also the alcoholic who provides us with a wonderful example of adults who are misdirected:

"Why are you drinking?...
To forget... That I'm ashamed... Of drinking."  

We get the overall impression that adults are very strange creatures who do not entirely understand how to be themselves. The Little Prince is definitely not any old children's book -- it's a phenomenal piece of artwork that should be preserved forever. It includes criticisms of people today and what they do and it brought to light the way children act how they do it. It also adds a childlike perspective on how strange adults are and how much they don't understand because of their close-mindedness. The ending of the book was also amazing. His last drawing was a black and white version of the drawing on the page before. His musings gained an air of sadness while still retaining the childlike quality. Overall, this book is so perfect and a short read. It probably takes less than an hour to read but it stays with you for so much longer. Like I said before, it's one of those books that everyone should read at least once because it's definitely life chnging and mind blowing.

- Noor

Do you think adults are strange creatures?

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