Book Review: Babar and the Ghost
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What Parents Should Know
This story teaches children that one can overcome fear by
encountering its not-so-scary source. However, the tale lacks
the characterization and plot twists you might expect from
Jean's stories, and standing alone as a ghost story, even
without Babar's family, it lacks the suspense and thrills
American children have come to expect from the genre.
Common Sense Media Review
Laurent de Brunhoff grew up listening to his mother's
stories about a small elephant that his father, Jean, turned
into Babar, one of the most solid icons of children's
literature. Jean began publishing his stories late in life, and
it fell to Laurent to keep up the family tradition.
Babar's tales are now read all over the world, and he and the other inhabitants of Celesteville are found in a series of books and are featured on many licensed products. As Laurent has observed, Babar has indeed been a friend to him all his life.
This tale, however, lacks the characterization and plot twists you might expect from Jean's stories, and standing alone as a ghost story, even without Babar's family, it lacks the suspense and thrills American children have come to expect from the genre.
However, it is a good-natured and well-meaning book, ideal for parents who are being hounded for a ghost story by children too young to handle emotional suspense. Laurent's pictures are not as detailed or compelling as his father's, but in the end he succeeds in his lifelong effort to keep Babar alive in children's minds.
The Story of Babar, the Little Elephant is the first and strongest book in the Babar series. For a better ghost story for very young children, try Robert Bright's Georgie.
Common Sense Media is a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing information to help parents make media and entertainment choices for their families.
