Laurent de Brunhoff (1925–2024)

That famous picture-book elephant Babar, who first appeared in 1931 in The Story of Babar: The Little Elephant, presents the alphabet in this educational title for younger children. Each letter is presented with a word beginning with that letter, as well as one or two examples of sentences using such words - Zephir gets jam on his jacket when he juggles the jars" - as the book proceeds from A to Z.

Although not the book I had intended to read - I was looking for a copy of the English show more translation of the 1934 ABC de Babar, the fourth of seven original Babar books penned by Jean de Brunhoff, but somehow got this 1983 title from de Brunhoff's son Laurent, who has continued his father's work - I did find this a fairly engaging selection, as alphabet books go. The artwork is appealing, especially for fans of Babar, and the examples used are unexceptionable. Sadly, it doesn't look like my library system has the original Jean de Brunhoff alphabet book, so my plan to read all of his original Babar titles has hit a snag. I'd be curious to know what examples the father gave, and how they compare to the son's, but since that isn't possible, I'll be moving on to the next book in the series, Babar and Zephir. show less

Did the Babar books drive the author mad, or what? This is a very strange picture book. I recommend reading it to any children you want to grow up as weirdly as possible.

This book is the perfect book for littler kids who are having problems with the fact that they are so little, young, or different from everyone else. It is a book that ends with the underdog on top. The character Isabelle is a little elephant that feels left out of all the big kid and grown up activities because of her small demeanor/stature. The story continues with the family going to a circus. Isabelle wants to be in the circus someday, but by saying so all of the other kids laugh at her. show more She shows off her acrobatic skills and is seen by one of the carnies and is invited to perform with them. This boosts her confidence about her size and ends up loving who she is even though she is small. Her family reminds her of all the things she can do as a small elephant that makes her realize, “sometimes it is nice to be little!” (32). The pictures in this book are colorful, simplistic, and eye-catching. My interpretations for possible discussions in the classroom could be about what is something about your students that they don’t like. As an educator you can discuss with him or her that it is okay to be different because not everyone is that same. The ultimate lesson is that they learn to love themselves for who they are and to love their abilities no matter what they can or cannot do. show less

This was just too weird to keep, according to three generations of my family - and we have a pretty high tolerance for weird. Actually, we have a high ambient level of weird - but this book was over the top.