The Boxer and the Princess

Max is a sensitive young rhinoceroses. His skin is so thin that others can see right into him. He is an innocent with nothing to hide, but as his father teaches him that universal paternal lesson, "life is hard." He has to learn to protect himself. Not just protect himself, but also fight, go on the offensive. To cover his thin skin with armor. He gets very good at this, outgrows his need for parental protection, and goes off into the world. He becomes a renowned dragon slayer. But when Max meets the princess of his dreams, she wants nothing to do with a fighter. And he gradually sheds all his layers of armor, all his tools of warfare, until he is back to himself, naked, with his thin skin, "then the princess could see his heart." He becomes a king, and keeps his armor nearby in case he should need it again. I'm rereading my last paragraphs and it makes this book sound kind of heavy. But it's not. All that developmental angst seems cute and playful as rendered in this children's book. Max's adventures provide a nice metaphor of the process that young boys go through everywhere. He first needs to learn the hard lessons of the true cruelty of the world. He needs to learn to cope, to not be debilitated or victimized by the harshness around him. Having mastered that, he then needs to learn how- and when- to take down those defenses, how to make himself vulnerable so that he can experience true intimacy with another. In a nut-shell: a nice picture book, thumbs up, an imaginative enough story to keep kids interested and clever enough to prove thought-provoking for their grown-ups too.

Its not easy for a sensitive rhino to make his way in a world that sometimes tramples on his tender feelings. This gloriously illustrated tale introduces us to Max, who learns how to unlock his emotions by falling in love with The Princess.