The Little Prince - Best Dedication

I had a very nice comment last time from a visitor on the blog (you know who you are :)) and automatically I was curious to check out her profile and that's when I discovered that one of her favorite books was "The little prince" by Antoine de Saint Exupéry. Now a lot of us must have read it or seen the movie adaptations. I first read the book when I was very very young and I can't even remember the last time I've seen it on TV. 

 

I had forgotten a lot of details of the story until a couple of years ago when I stumbled upon the book again and that is when I made great amount of discoveries regarding the plot, the author and many other things. This is not technically a review of this book because I believe I need to re read it once again if I ever want to give it justice (which I doubt anyone really could). But for now, I just wanted to share with you the thing which struck me like lightning when I stumbled upon the book the second time in my life and that was awkwadely the author's dedication. Maybe I never read the dedication the first time, maybe I was too young to remember it or to understand it but one thing is sure: I have never liked a dedication before in my life and I'll never ever forget this one. I hope that you'll enjoy discovering/rediscovering it as much as I did so here it goes in both French and English versions:

 

A Léon Werth. Je demande pardon aux enfants d'avoir dédié ce livre à une grande personne. J'ai une excuse sérieuse : cette grande personne est le meilleur ami que j'ai au monde. J'ai une autre excuse : cette grande personne peut tout comprendre, même les livres pour enfants. J'ai une troisième excuse : cette grande personne habite la France où elle a faim et froid. Elle a besoin d'être consolée. Si toutes ces excuses ne suffisent pas, je veux bien dédier ce livre à l'enfant qu'a été autrefois cette grande personne. Toutes les grandes personnes ont d'abord été des enfants. (Mais peu d'entre elles s'en souviennent.) Je corrige donc ma dédicace :

A Léon Werth quand il était petit garçon

 

 

TO LEON WERTH. I ask the indulgence of the children who may read this book for dedicating it to a grown-up. I have a serious reason: he is the best friend I have in the world. I have another reason: this grown-up understands everything, even books about children. I have a third reason: he lives in France where he is hungry and cold. He needs cheering up. If all these reasons are not enough, I will dedicate the book to the child from whom this grown-up grew. All grown-ups were once children--although few of them remember it. And so I correct my dedication:

TO LEON WERTH
WHEN HE WAS A LITTLE BOY

Now I really hope you felt the same as I did (maybe not as emotional though :D) upon reading the dedication. I also hope that if you haven't read this magical and one of a kind story full of imagination that you do it. After all, the author, and especially this book did not only mark me but rather marked the world entirely. France had even a 50 francs banknote and a very lovely one designed in their honor where you could see the portrait of Saint Exupéry, the little prince, the snake and the elephant and many other elements from the story in addition to the plane in which the hero author/pilot died in 1944. What a shame the Euro banknotes aren't dedicated to influential artists/ scientists like the Franc bills were! I just think it would be amazing if countries everywhere designed at least one banknote honoring an author/ or a book. It would just be heavenly for me, after all, look for yourselves and you'll see how pretty that 50 francs bill was. Oh and one last thing: Which authors would you think are worthy to be on a banknote? Doesn't have to be a writer from you country, choose any country. I know who mine would be but I'll only share if you do it first ;)