Synopsis
A king gives up his royal lifestyle and discovers that having "nothing" is better than having everything.When King Bear moves out of the castle to the third floor of an apartment building, he quickly affirms that being king was not all that it was cracked up to be. He likes putting on his own cozy pajamas himself, without any servants to help. He finds he doesn't need a big fancy horse-drawn carriage. His pet rabbit is happier without a leash. All he needs is a small balcony, the sun, the sounds of the city, and a pot of pansies to tend. When the townsfolk begin laughing at what a nothing king he has become, he laughs back at their folly. He finally understands what's most important in life.
Author Biography: Ellen van Lieshout and Erik van Os are a husband-and-wife team who write books, songs, and poetry for children and beginning readers. Elle grew up with seven older siblings on a farm in a small village. Her first book, Mama komt toch altijd terug (Mommy Always Comes Back), published in 1993, was about the death of her mother when Elle was six years old. Erik also grew up in a small village. His parents ran a pet shop and a nursery in which he and his three siblings helped out. He always preferred to play soccer. Now Elle and Erik live with their daughter and son and pets in Tilburg, the Netherlands. Paula Gerritsen is a picture book artist and a magazine illustrator. She has also studied and worked in the field of child psychology. She lives in Megen, the Netherlands, with her husband and three children. Her most recent picture book, A Nice Party, was also written by van Lieshout and van Os.
Publishers Weekly
This Dutch team tells a fable about a runaway king, who is happiest in humbler surroundings, with warmth and economy. The front endpapers show the big brown ursine monarch in an ermine robe, facing a pile of documents in despair. On the title page, he drives his own royal carriage away from the castle to an apartment building in town. "Why, Your Majesty,...Where are your servants?" says the landlord. "Not here," says the king happily. He sets about establishing a resolutely regular life, scrubbing his own back and buying his own groceries. Watching the king break all the rules will tickle youngsters; the king puts a "For Sale" sign on his royal carriage, whistles in public, gives his robe and crown to the prime minister and dreams out on his balcony. Not even taunts from the neighbors can discourage him-"Ha, ha, he calls himself a king! But he has absolutely nothing... He is a nothing king!" "I have a rabbit, a pansy, and a balcony in the sun," he says. "How can you call that nothing!" Gerritsen's pastel and gouache full-bleed spreads depict animal characters with stylized features and droll expressions, and her delicate charcoal lines and nuanced color choices give depth to the images. The message that happiness means more than wealth is a familiar one, but having a king deliver it gives the message a little extra oomph. Ages 2-6. (Nov.) Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.