★★★★★ Star Prince in Japanese

The Little Prince (Japanese Edition)

Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

Le Petit Prince is always my first novel to read in a new language. Besides being a beautiful book in simple language, it has for me the special advantage that I have now read it in several languages and almost have it memorized. Thus, I read 星の王子さま. In Japanese, the title is actually a little different. 星 - star, の - genitive particle, 王 - king. 子 - child, さま - sama, honorific title for a lord. So, "Star Prince". I read it very slowly, at the rate of 5 new words every two days, which I made into flash cards (Anki) that I practice every morning. The pace picked up as I approached the end and fewer words were unfamiliar. Still, I've been at it for well over a year. And at that, I skipped entirely the Afterword in Japanese. This edition is written mostly in hiragana, with only the very simplest kanji.

I had long been of the opinion that Le Petit Prince is really a book for adults, disguised as a children's book. But on this re-read I realized that some parts are well suited for kids. The friendship between the fox and the Prince, especially, is a lucid description of love without ever using that word. Instead, the fox speaks of being tamed.

Although I don't think I have ever grown up, there are parts of me that have against my will become more adult. And these parts of me dislike some parts of 星の王子さま. In general, I like 星の王子さま least when it is condemning things that Antoine de Saint-Exupéry thought poorly of, and best when it shows the magic of love and imagination.

So, I can check off another language. I have now read Le Petit Prince in French, English, German, Spanish, and Japanese.

The Little Prince (Japanese Edition) on Amazon

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