Children’s stories are special. In fact, they can be harder to work with than any other stories. They can capture the hearts of young and old alike with their simple yet powerful messages. Two great examples are “The Little Prince” by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry and “My Sweet Orange Tree” by José Mauro de Vasconcelos. I’d like to use them as examples because these stories are loved by both children and adults. I used to enjoy them and I still do.
These stories can be enjoyed by everyone. Because they use simple words to talk about big ideas. They make children smile and remind adults of their own nostalgic times.
They can also bring back memories for adults. “The Little Prince” is about friendship and growing up, and reminds us of our own childhood adventures. “My Sweet Orange Tree” shows us the world through a child’s eyes and takes us back. So while these stories are great for children, they also make adults think about their own youth.
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But writing stories for children is not easy. You have to communicate with them in a way they can understand, while at the same time conveying something important. It’s a difficult balance to strike.
These stories are famous because they tell their stories in a special way. “The Little Prince” uses imagination to tell of the adventures and lessons they encounter along the way. Meanwhile, “My Sweet Orange Tree” shows us the world as it is, but with innocent thoughts.
What makes them famous is the way they’re told. “The Little Prince” focuses more on the philosophical side of the meanings, which, to be honest, can be a bit difficult to get across to children at first. I suppose that is why the author chose a fairy tale style of narration for the book. The aim must be to give advice and lessons without boring them.
On the other hand, “My Sweet Orange Tree” is all about a child’s feelings and the challenges of life and growing up. It’s like talking to a friend, seeing the funny, silly, interesting and unexpected things that Zeze experiences. Sometimes you get away with the things you’ve done, and sometimes the punishment is relentless. Makes you go through deep emotional waves.
I plan to have my children read both classic and modern children’s books. While the modern ones may seem incompetent because of the plethora of authors and stories, the classics may also be difficult for them to understand because of the era in which they were written.
So I will let them read everything and listen to what they learn or think about these stories.
A funny elephant with its jungle friends from a random children’s book might look funny. But it won’t be as powerful as a child travelling through planets, making friends and experiencing interesting stories and life lessons written by skilled hands.
In addition to these stories, “The Lion King” and “Winnie the Pooh” seem like good options to me, as they tend to offer both fun and life lessons.
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