The Rescue of Babar - Hardcover

De Brunhoff, Laurent

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 067983897X ISBN 13: 9780679838975

Publisher: Random House Books for Young Readers, 1993

Synopsis

When Babar disappears during a fishing trip with his daughter, it is up to Isabelle to find him and rescue him from his kidnappers.

About this title

From Publishers Weekly:

In this adventure within an adventure, Babar is kidnapped while on a camping trip with his youngest daughter, Isabelle. When the plucky little pachyderm sets off through the woods to find Babar, she meets up with a lion, a monkey and a snake, all of whom offer their services to help locate her missing father. The snake shows them a door hidden in a boulder; it is the entrance to a tunnel that leads to an elaborate city built inside the crater of a volcano. Here--masterfully rendered in de Brunhoff's characteristically lively watercolors that fill the oversized pages--the residents are striped elephants who dress in togas and carry lyres "which they stroked now and then to produce lovely music." In a typically inventive twist, the author has Isabelle buy an ice cream from a vendor for the price of singing a song (she chooses "Happy Birthday"). She then tackles the task at hand, and with great aplomb rescues Babar from his captors. Accompanied by her animal friends, Isabelle and her father make a triumphant return to Celesteville, bringing this particularly charming caper to a festive close. Ages 4-8.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist:

Ages 3-7. On a fishing trip with Isabelle, Babar is kidnapped. Isabelle sets out to rescue him and, with the help of a lion, a monkey, and a snake, finds her way to a secret kingdom populated by striped elephants who wear togas and, apparently, are fond of Greco-Mayan architecture and cable cars. Although Isabelle finds Babar, he refuses to leave. It's only after she discovers that his watermelon smoothie has been tampered with that she is able to get him to change his mind. The extra large format works well, imparting a nice, solid feeling to the design and making the pictures especially useful for group story time. The comforting familiarity of the art style and the characters will automatically make the tale a favorite with Babar fans, and the unusual setting and fantastic plot line will keep Babar's kingdom and legend fresh. Janice Del Negro

About this edition

• Publisher: Random House Books for Young Readers
• Publication date: 1993
• ISBN 10: 067983897X
• ISBN 13: 9780679838975
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 36