The Little Prince, reviewed by Nitika Khaitan

The Little Prince

Reviewed by
Name: Nitika Khaitan
School: Convent of Jesus and Mary, (Bangla Sahib Marg) New Delhi

‘Classic – n. A work of enduring excellence.’ If there’s any book that deserves to be included in this dictionary definition, it’s neither a heavy tome meant for English Honours students nor a self proclaimed classic by the Ancient Greeks, but ‘The Little Prince’. For no matter how many times you read it, it’s a book that never fails to deliver, in words a child could understand, things that grown-up don’t.
Take for example, the businessman who prides himself at ceaselessly counting the stars he ‘owns’ but is left speechless when that gem of a character – the little prince – asks of what use is it to the stars that he owns them.
Equally unforgettable is his insight that ‘Men grow 5000 roses in a garden and don’t find what they’re looking for when they could do so with one rose. For the eye is blind and one must see with the heart.’
His persevering questioning, life on the planet of 44 sunsets, to-die-for loyalty to his friends and unique perspective on ‘matters of consequence’ are a timeless celebration of a child’s faculty of wonder, capacity to love, innocence and imagination.
So when he comes back, won’t you let me know?