Prince Bibo

Name: Prince Bibo
ISBN: 9787532774760

皮埃尔·格里帕里 / 王振孙Shanghai Translation Publishing House · ChinaJul 2023

4.0

Word count: 57K words
Chapters: 31
ISBN: 9787532774760

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Summary

Have you ever heard of the children shop? In this wondrous land, parents who wish to have a child must go there to choose one, and must promise the child a wish. The old king promises Prince Bipo a little red horse, and so the prince agrees to become his son. Bipo grows up day by day, and one day rides out on his little horse to see the world; when he returns, he finds the palace turned into a ruin and the king and queen transformed into a witch and a dwarf. Certain that this is the witch's magic, he slips away to find a way to save his parents. Later he is trapped in the Lost Children's Inn and cannot leave unless he tells a story the landlady has never heard; he also meets a smooth-talking false friend who tricks him into enlisting in the army; and at the most perilous moment of all, he encounters a man-eating dragon and is himself transformed into a dragon...

Editor's review

Prince Bibo is a modern fairy tale by the French author Pierre Gripari, seamlessly blending the narrative framework of traditional tales with existential philosophical reflection. The story follows Prince Bibo, who refuses to inherit the throne and sets out on a journey of self-discovery. Along the way he encounters a witch, a giant, talking animals, and a host of other fantastical characters; after undergoing various trials, he finally grasps the true meaning of freedom, responsibility, and life. With his distinctive humor and poetic touch, Gripari constructs a world that is at once absurd and profound. This is no simple children's book: on the surface it is adventure and fantasy, but at its core it is a metaphorical exploration of the rules of the adult world and the nature of human beings. This edition from Shanghai Translation Publishing House is excellently translated and preserves the language style and philosophical flavor of the original. For readers, it is a reading experience in which lightness and weight are interwoven, inviting us, like Bibo, to reexamine—within seemingly absurd plots—the eternal questions of growth, choice, and self-identity.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Adult readers who enjoy modern fairy tales or allegorical literature
Readers interested in existentialist philosophy or the metaphors of life, but who prefer to approach them through light narrative
Parents seeking deeply literary and thought-provoking material for parent-child reading (with appropriate guidance)
Enthusiasts who appreciate the distinctive humor and poetic style of French literature

Not a good fit for

Readers expecting a purely fast-paced adventure story
Young children seeking clear answers and traditional moral lessons

Reading tips

Read it as a philosophical allegory, paying attention to the metaphors behind the characters' dialogue and plot twists.
Slow down the pace and savor the author's concise, poetic language.
After reading, consider: how does Bibo's journey resonate with, or differ from, your own experience of seeking your "self"?

About the publisher

Shanghai Translation Publishing House China · Founded in 1978

Shanghai Translation Publishing House is a Chinese publisher oriented mainly toward translation and publishing. Its publications cover foreign literature, world classics and classic works, as well as social culture, folk literature and classical poetry. The database contains 2,618 titles, including Never Let Me Go, Les Misérables (2 volumes), Don Quixote (illustrated collector's edition), The Complete Comedies of Molière (4 volumes), The Complete Novels of Kafka (3 volumes), The Collected Works of Dostoevsky (9-volume set), Reason and Persons, and Oedipus Rex (Translation Classics). Its author resources include foreign writers such as Kazuo Ishiguro, Victor Hugo, Cervantes and Molière, as well as translators such as Zheng Kelu, Sun Jiameng, Li Jianwu and Zhang Kun. The publisher has brands such as "Translation Classics Selections" and "Translation Documentary," and emphasizes translated works in foreign literature and the humanities and social sciences, while also publishing bilingual dictionaries and foreign-language educational books. Public information is limited; the above is based on the book information in the database.

版权信息
01 说谎者的故事
02 一个故事的故事
03 睡梦中的旅行
04 孩子商店
05 小红马比波
06 相互训练
07 跃过火山
08 矮子和女巫
09 第一个愿望
10 第二和第三个愿望
11 看不见的旅行
12 小女巫
13 迷童客店
14 “忧愁”的故事
15 简短的一章
16 不死的科什
17 不死的科什（续完）
18 桌子和刀
19 虚情假意的朋友
20 在国王之国
21 恶龙塔拉皮斯特拉孔
22 好心得恶报
23 恶龙比波
24 解脱
25 大图书馆
26 金发女骑士
27 金发女骑士的故事
28 再次跃过火山
29 比波国王
30 续篇和重新开始

FAQ

Is this book a children's book?

It has the shell of a fairy tale, but its core is full of philosophical reflection on the adult world. It is more suitable for young adults and above, or for parent-child reading guided by parents.

What is the main theme of the story?

The core theme is the struggle of the individual between established social rules and personal free will, and the search for the meaning of life and the fundamental question of "who am I".

What other similar works has the author Pierre Gripari written?

Gripari was a renowned French fairy-tale writer and playwright whose works often blend fantasy and philosophy; works such as The Story of the Rue de la Belle Vallée also reflect a similar style.

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About the author

皮埃尔·格里帕里 Author

Pierre Gripari is a French-language author known for his children's fantasy literature. Publicly available information about him in China is currently limited, and details of his life, such as his birth and death years and national identity, remain to be further verified. In the Chinese book database, only one of his works is included, namely his representative work Prince Bibo. This work falls under the category of foreign literature and is generally regarded as a fantasy story for young readers, drawing them in with its unusual imagination and narrative appeal. Gripari's writing style tends to combine fairy-tale and fantasy traditions, and he is skilled at creating an imaginative world with a sense of layered depth within a seemingly simple story framework; his language is vivid, and his plots carry the flavor of folk tales. Although the scale of translation and introduction is modest, the Chinese edition of Prince Bibo offers Chinese readers a window into French children's literature and has helped Gripari's name circulate among enthusiasts of foreign literature.

王振孙 Author

Wang Zhensun is an important translator in the field of French literature in China. Public information about him is limited, and details of his life, such as birth and death dates, native place, and educational background, are not recorded in the available sources. Judging from his Chinese translations, he has long devoted himself to translating Maupassant's works. Seventeen related titles are held in the collection, including representative translations such as Boule de Suif, Bel-Ami, A Life, My Uncle Jules, and the five-volume Complete Short Stories of Maupassant. These translations mostly fall under foreign literature and world classics, covering Maupassant's novels as well as celebrated short stories. His renderings are known for staying close to the originals and preserving their satirical and realistic tone, offering Chinese readers reliable access to nineteenth-century French society and critical realist literature.