The Story of Babar: The Little Elephant

I’m passing down my favorites to my grandchildren - it expands the minds of littles to read such books and use their imagination to “travel” with the characters.

C'est la première histoire de Babar. La maman de Babar est tuée par un vilain chasseur, et Babar se sauve. Mon enfant pleure quand il vois Babar pleure a la fenêtre de la vielle dame, mais c'est la vie; notre chien vient de mourir, et je lui dit, "Oui, sa mere est morte comme Diggy est morte."

Thank God for the French speakers of the world. Were it not for them, Babar might not have ever been created and we would have to live in a wretched Babar-less world. As it is, however, we are blessed to have this delightful story at our fingertips at any time. The story of Babar was originally published in 1933, and it has stood the test of time with dignity and flair.The story of Babar is simple. After his mother is shot by a cruel hunter, the little elephant runs away to a metropolitan city. Once there, he is taken under the wing of a kindly older lady. Babar then proceeds to become the greatest dandy of children's literature today. Here is the section I love the most: "Babar then buys himself: A shirt with a collar and tie, a suit of a becoming shade of green, then a handsome derby hat, and also shoes with spats". Contrary to popular thought, an elephant in spats is the most dignified thing in the world. With these purchases Babar has transformed himself from rural rube to the original metrosexual. He becomes cultured, learning the rudimentary aspects of human civilization while regaling party guests with his tales of the forest (note his pin-striped pants and casual dinner jacket). Eventually Babar is lured back to his jungle home and is swiftly crowned King of the elephants.The 1933 setting in which Babar acclimatizes himself has grown more charming over the years. And most remarkably? Most older picture books contain at least one racial stereotype somewhere in the midst of a picture. Not so our darling "Babar". I feel safe in saying that you might search through any future adventure of the winsome elephant and not stumble across a single picture or piece of writing that causes you a twenty-first century gasp of disgust. This isn't to say that there aren't some rather peculiar dated aspects to the book. I read this book as a child and had a vivid visceral memory return to me when I saw the sickly state of the former King of the elephants who passed away after eating a bad mushroom. That is a grotesquerie unknown to the kiddies today. But all in all, "Babar" is without fault. Certainly he's the essence of capitalism. One might believe the elephants crown him king as much for his pretty red convertible as for his brains. But Babar is still a unique and moving tale that will continue to entertain the masses of children for years and years to come.

I have fond memories of tracing my fingers over the elephants, enjoined trunk to tail, which walked over the back and front of our huge BABAR book. Thanks to a thoughtful baby gift from my cousin, I continue to do so, with my two sons. We enjoy finding Babar among the other little elephants and weep together over his mother`s cruel demise. We continue to delight at his resilience and enjoy with him his first experiences with people things, and always rejoice at his good fortune and friends.While there are some problematic elements, ( as when the hunter shoots Babar`s mother or when he marries his cousin,) please keep in mind when this was written and do not let this stop you from sharing this classic with your young ones. Parents and caretakers should seize this great opportunity to talk with them while addressing the issues. There are many positive aspects to the story and the characters, themselves. Delightfully illustrated and charmingly told, the one drawback is that the text, while charming for adults reading aloud, can be an obstacle to early readers.

In this book, the first in the Babar series, we hear the tale of the experiences that shaped the the young and adventurous Babar during his formative years, culminating with his being crowned King of the Elephants.The Babar books contain some of the most charming and entertaining drawings and storylines of any children's books ever written. Proof is that as one grows older, their appeal seems to grow rather than diminish. Although great in any language, Babar is best of all in its original French. The text is simple enough that even those with only a modest French reading level should be able to enjoy this book.

My children adored this book from a very early age due to the charm of the text and the pictures. The bon-bons, the kind old lady, the suit of clothes, all create a Parisian fantasy for the big, shy Babar. My kids are now high-schoolers and take French. I like to think it was due to those first images of the Tour Eiffel in this book! Every kid should have this delightful story. My high schoolers still enjoy a trip down memory lane once in awhile with Babar.