The Little Prince
written by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
Those baobabs! Everyday the Little Prince must tend his small asteroid, barley big enough for himself, in order to keep the baobabs at bay else they grow into gigantic trees that will take over his little home. A catastrophe. He must also watch the volcanos, else they erupt. A rake will do. And he must care for his rose.
It is the aviator who tells us of this boy on the asteroid. He tells of the prince's life on the Asteroid #325, his leaving, and his consequent journey to get back. The aviator meets the Little Prince when his one-man airplane crashes in the Sahara desert. It's surprising to find a young boy in the middle of the dessert, but no more surprising than the Little Prince asking him to "Draw me a sheep...".
So when you are requested to draw a sheep, what else do you do but draw a sheep? And when you find the story of The Little Prince, what else is there to do but love it? There's few things I appreciate more in a book than imagination and intention. Little volcanos, a ruler of nothing, an untamed fox, and all kinds of creativity make this book iconic, but its deeper message about what it means to be a grown up and the trappings that they face, make this book lasting.
It may be a children's book, but if you missed The Little Prince in your youth, it's worth meeting the Little Prince anyway. Maybe he'll ask you to draw him a sheep.
Above you'll find a song by Regina Spektor that is inspired by The Little Prince and a movie adaptation of The Little Prince.
