Dino Buzzati’s THE BEARS’ FAMOUS INVASION OF SICILY has the appearance of a children’s book with a much more subversive political message at heart. The book starts with the author’s charming illustrations and brief character descriptions- of the Bear Marzipan, the Bear Dandelion, the Bear Merlin, Marmoset the Cat and others. This introduction of the major players and their driving character traits has a theatrical almost overture-like effect of setting the stage for the action that follows.

The plot reads as a magical-realist, forgotten history lesson of Sicily and the long wars and strife between bears and humans. The overriding themes of the book involve the corruption of humans and the real moral risk faced by the bears when they begin to adopt the airs and aspirations of their human counterparts. Few children’s books deal with war or politics and none so inventively. It works beautifully for the child reader and adult reader alike. A mature young reader (for example a child who easily picked up on the allegory of the Narnia Chronicles) will discern much about human/bear nature and an adult with some exposure to history will read more into the sections on war and politics. In spite of basic premise (the ease with which power and decadence corrupt) it has a healthy dose of humor, magic and hope to balance the reality.

The New York Review of Books deserves high praise for bringing back the neglected classics for the enjoyment of both children and adults. ( )

Book #4 - The Bears' Famous Invasion of Sicily by Dino Buzzati (translated by Frances Lobb)

After a grueling winter destroys the food supply, Leander, king of the bears, decides they must leave their mountain homes to search for food in the valley among the cities of men. They encounter much resistance along the way, but they are eventually triumphant. They enter the city, are fed, and finally they are accepted by men as friends. However, that is not the end of their troubles.

Written as a folk tale, the book mixes poetry and prose to tell the story of the bears' struggle for physical survival and later moral survival. What is the cost that the bears pay to exchange their natural home for the excesses and frivolities of the urban and modern world? The illustrations are whimsical. The story is complex and not for younger readers. Some of the vocabulary may have children (and adults) reaching for their dictionaries! The tale of "the natural" vs. "the civilized" is an old one, and a somewhat simplified one (natural = good, civilized = bad), but the bears' story is engaging. I recommend it for older children and adults. ( )