Review: “The Little Prince”

The first time I read this novel I was ten years old and my impression was negative. It was annoying for me since the first page, where the author dedicates the novel to his friend, but to his version as a child.

The excuses he argued seemed a bit silly to me and as such, the whole book seemed tedious to me and although I liked his illustrations, the book was not tempting enough to finish it.

Years later I came across this novel again and it was where I fell deeply in love with the story.

The story is simple, it’s about an aviator lost in the desert, and while he’s trying to fix his plane, a little boy from another planet appears out of nowhere and starts talking to him. This strange little boy tells him about his planet and the other planets he has known before coming to earth; however, this novel not only tells a fantastic story, but within it we can find memories that we may not have lived yet.

On the second reading, I understood why the first time it came into my hands, the story did not captivate me. The answer was simple… The first time, I was a girl and I did not imagine the idea that a person would change so much when they grew up, to the point of being able to identify several people within the same little boy (by the way, I am not referring to psychological disorders)

Growing up make me realized that the little prince was right, the “world of adults” is really strange. From a distance, he helped me notice that the more we are exposed to the “world of adults”, we run the risk of letting our “inside child” die, because the “world of adults” absorbs and fills our mind with absurd needs .

Like Antoine, I too was discouraged by the “big guys” and didn’t become a painter, but do do a few doodles from time to time.

Suddenly, one day we wake up and we never have time because we take care of “important things” and we run without even knowing where we want to go. It’s like we live on automatic. Wasn’t life supposed to follow our heart?

When we were children we had everything clearer, however, perhaps many of our dreams were not logical for “the grown-ups”, who often do not “correct” us to improve, but only lead us to be like them. Do not misunderstand me, it is not that there is something wrong with being like our elders, but they are them, we should aspire to shine with our own light; and that definitely includes never letting go of our “inside child” at all.

With the second, the third and subsequent readings, I came to the conclusion that this novel is not a story for children per se, rather I think that this novel is made for all the “inside children” who live within “adults” .

I believe that regardless of the nationality of potential future readers, Antoine hits the nail on the head and captures the universal essence of the “world of adults” because head-on, he shows us how ridiculous it can sometimes be to act for being immersed in “the important things”; however, in a very subtle way it also shows us what is really important in this journey called life. For all that, I consider this to be a masterpiece.

Finally, I think that reading “The Little Prince” by itself is a delight, but I think that the song “feel” by Robbie Williams may be able to lead you to a state of reflection, which we sometimes avoid because we are immersed in the “world of the important things”; so to get out of the routine why not take a walk through this little frequented place.

And what about you, what would be your song? — What’s more, would you choose a song to accompany this book.

See you

Lola