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Rating: 
Summary: A Classic
Review: From the beautiful illustrations, to the charming characters, everything about Babar reminds you of a time when we took the intelligence of our children seriously. The first thing anyone who grew-up on more modern fare will notice is the delightful and literate prose. The reason children could speak latin by 5th grade 80 years ago, was that they weren't condescended-to; and Babar doesn't either. You won't get the modern "barney-speak" here, this generation had more confidence in your children, believe me. Although the prose may be too difficult for the average 5 or 6 yr-old to read on their own, they will have no difficulty at all in understanding it perfectly when read to them. Now my 5 yr-old daughter knows what a "perambulator" is, you won't get that from the Wiggles. As far as the complaints in regard to "scariness", all I can say is, if this is scary because Babar's mother is killed by a hunter, then you'd better take Bambi, The Lion King and close to all of the fairy tales off of the reading list as well. The subject is handled compassionately and tastefully. Of course I want to sheild my child from horrific content, but if we refuse to gently ease them in to life's realities, such as the loss of loved-ones, then their entertainment turns from safe into vacuous pretty quickly. I won't even waste bandwidth on the silly, leftist nonsense regarding imperialism. There is no political content here, subtle or otherwise. If you really want the kind of western culture "self-flagellation" that these aging hippies seem to thrive on, try Disney's Pocahontas, or a Cartoon version of The Life of Che Guevara. Assume the best of your kids and try the Babar series, particularly the older ones.
Rating: 
Summary: Interesting Classic
Review: I had a beach Babar book as a child, so I bought this to share with my daughter. It is kind of bizarre, so keep in mind that it was written in the 1930's. First, Babar's mother is killed, as was the fate of most classic animal stories. Then, he decides to become more like men, HOW ODD! He wears clothes and walks on his back legs. Any time any of the elephants in this book wear clothes, they gain the instant ability to walk on their hind legs. When he returns to the elephants, he is crowned king, which is unlikely since elephants are matriarchal (they are led by females and grown males are banned from the group except during mating times). Then he marries his cousin, and they live happily ever after. In the spirit of Curious George, who was kidnapped from his home and forced to conform to human ways, this is a charming but very out-dated tale.
Rating:
Summary: Babar, a Classic
Review: I have fond memories of tracing my fingers over the elephants, enjoined trunk to tail, which walked over the back and front of our huge BABAR book. Thanks to a thoughtful baby gift from my cousin, I continue to do so, with my two sons. We enjoy finding Babar among the other little elephants and weep together over his mother`s cruel demise. We continue to delight at his resilience and enjoy with him his first experiences with people things, and always rejoice at his good fortune and friends.While there are some problematic elements, ( as when the hunter shoots Babar`s mother or when he marries his cousin,) please keep in mind when this was written and do not let this stop you from sharing this classic with your young ones. Parents and caretakers should seize this great opportunity to talk with them while addressing the issues. There are many positive aspects to the story and the characters, themselves. Delightfully illustrated and charmingly told, the one drawback is that the text, while charming for adults reading aloud, can be an obstacle to early readers.
Rating:
Summary: A childhood's classic.
Review: Some children's books can be read over and over again, and Jean De Brunhoff's book about Babar, the little elephant is among them.
The copy we have in our house were purchasted in 1988 and has survived 4 kids. Out Marta is the forth one, and at age 6 she still loves to cuddle up with a smile on her face listening to the story of Babar. The very sad part for a six year old is the beginning where Babar's mother dies and Babar runs away. But Babar is lucky and meets an old lady who takes care of him. And the joy is always big in the end when Babar meets his childhood friends and cousins again in the end of the books. And even becomes a king and marries his cousin Celeste.
The book was written in 1939, but is still well worth reading for any child, and should be part of every lucky child's book collection. It will still be read again and again here in Norway, though the pages in the copy we have almost fall apart now (they can always be glued together again though) Britt Arnhild Lindland
Rating:
Summary: If I were king of the foreeeeest
Review: Thank God for the French speakers of the world. Were it not for them, Babar might not have ever been created and we would have to live in a wretched Babar-less world. As it is, however, we are blessed to have this delightful story at our fingertips at any time. The story of Babar was originally published in 1933, and it has stood the test of time with dignity and flair. The story of Babar is simple. After his mother is shot by a cruel hunter, the little elephant runs away to a metropolitan city. Once there, he is taken under the wing of a kindly older lady. Babar then proceeds to become the greatest dandy of children's literature today. Here is the section I love the most: "Babar then buys himself: A shirt with a collar and tie, a suit of a becoming shade of green, then a handsome derby hat, and also shoes with spats". Contrary to popular thought, an elephant in spats is the most dignified thing in the world. With these purchases Babar has transformed himself from rural rube to the original metrosexual. He becomes cultured, learning the rudimentary aspects of human civilization while regaling party guests with his tales of the forest (note his pin-striped pants and casual dinner jacket). Eventually Babar is lured back to his jungle home and is swiftly crowned King of the elephants. The 1933 setting in which Babar acclimatizes himself has grown more charming over the years. And most remarkably? Most older picture books contain at least one racial stereotype somewhere in the midst of a picture. Not so our darling "Babar". I feel safe in saying that you might search through any future adventure of the winsome elephant and not stumble across a single picture or piece of writing that causes you a twenty-first century gasp of disgust. This isn't to say that there aren't some rather peculiar dated aspects to the book. I read this book as a child and had a vivid visceral memory return to me when I saw the sickly state of the former King of the elephants who passed away after eating a bad mushroom. That is a grotesquerie unknown to the kiddies today. But all in all, "Babar" is without fault. Certainly he's the essence of capitalism. One might believe the elephants crown him king as much for his pretty red convertible as for his brains. But Babar is still a unique and moving tale that will continue to entertain the masses of children for years and years to come.
Rating:
Summary: If I were king of the foreeeeest
Review: Thank God for the French speakers of the world. Were it not for them, Babar might not have ever been created and we would have to live in a wretched Babar-less world. As it is, however, we are blessed to have this delightful story at our fingertips at any time. The story of Babar was originally published in 1933, and it has stood the test of time with dignity and flair. The story of Babar is simple. After his mother is shot by a cruel hunter, the little elephant runs away to a metropolitan city. Once there, he is taken under the wing of a kindly older lady. Babar then proceeds to become the greatest dandy of children's literature today. Here is the section I love the most: "Babar then buys himself: A shirt with a collar and tie, a suit of a becoming shade of green, then a handsome derby hat, and also shoes with spats". Contrary to popular thought, an elephant in spats is the most dignified thing in the world. With these purchases Babar has transformed himself from rural rube to the original metrosexual. He becomes cultured, learning the rudimentary aspects of human civilization while regaling party guests with his tales of the forest (note his pin-striped pants and casual dinner jacket). Eventually Babar is lured back to his jungle home and is swiftly crowned King of the elephants. The 1933 setting in which Babar acclimatizes himself has grown more charming over the years. And most remarkably? Most older picture books contain at least one racial stereotype somewhere in the midst of a picture. Not so our darling "Babar". I feel safe in saying that you might search through any future adventure of the winsome elephant and not stumble across a single picture or piece of writing that causes you a twenty-first century gasp of disgust. This isn't to say that there aren't some rather peculiar dated aspects to the book. I read this book as a child and had a vivid visceral memory return to me when I saw the sickly state of the former King of the elephants who passed away after eating a bad mushroom. That is a grotesquerie unknown to the kiddies today. But all in all, "Babar" is without fault. Certainly he's the essence of capitalism. One might believe the elephants crown him king as much for his pretty red convertible as for his brains. But Babar is still a unique and moving tale that will continue to entertain the masses of children for years and years to come.
Rating:
Summary: The best thing since sliced bread...
Review: This captivating tale of how a young elephant overcame obstacles and prejudice kept me on the very edge of my seat the entire time. De Brunhoff's mastery of the literary terms created a real page-turner that I could not put down!
Rating: 
Summary: pretty scary for a young child
Review: We all know how nice it is to share a book from our own youth with our child. But take time out to re-read Babar as an adult -use your adult judgement, apply your morals and beliefs to this book. You will not need to dig very deep to see that this story is based on unabashed imperialism. It is, in fact, offensive. I am not saying that you should not go ahead and read it to your child. But do have a discussion with him or her about what Babar learns from the lady, his relationship with his mother and his bride. As for myself, I am just not buying this one.
Rating:
Summary: imperialist propaganda for the kiddies
Review: We received this book as a gift for our 3 yr old. I read it to her and it was really disturbing. Other reviews have noted that it must be read "in context" as far as the time it was written. I disagree - when was a child's viewing a mother's brutal murder (Babar seeing his mother being shot before his eyes) ever appropriate fare for a little child? Then, Babar has to run for his life and later on in the book, there is another death. Also, Babar is surprised when his cousins have no clothes - this is upsetting to him. I find it offensive - elephants don't need to be like people - they don't need clothes. I don't see the charm in this book at all. I don't see the attraction. One thing -- Babar marrying his cousin is the one thing that is not shocking - its not like incest, like brother and sister or like they grew up together -- people have been marrying cousins for thousands of years - up until at least the beginning of this century - hardly immoral.
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