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A review of The Red Balloon

by Albert Lamorisse

Ayoung boy finds a friend in a large red balloon.

Reviewed by: Paul A. Paterson
About Paul A. Paterson

The Red Balloon Pascal is a lonely little boy who lives Paris. He has no brothers or sisters, and his mother won't let him have a pet because, she says, they dirty up the house. One day while walking to school, he spots a large red balloon caught by its string on a light post and climbs up to rescue it. Immediately, Pascal runs into trouble -- he can't ride the streetcar with his balloon, so he walks all the way to school; he can't take his balloon into school so he arranges to leave his new friend in the janitor's room during the day. He even protects it from the rain on the long walk home. His mother is not happy that his balloon made him late, and throws it out the window, but magically the balloon does not fly away. It hovers outside his window and, the next day, follows him to school and stays outside the classroom, something that angers the school principal.

Pascal adopts the magical balloon as a friend, and protects it like a little brother when neighborhood bullies try to steal it. When, at last, he's surrounded by a gang of older boys, the red balloon returns the loyalty by flying to defend Pascal. Unfortunately, this act of heroism results in the balloons end, as a thrown stone pops it's skin, leaving Pascal sitting in the dust crying over the deflated remains of his only friend. At that moment, at the point of Pascal's greatest grief, he is uplifted by hundreds of colored balloons and lifted away to a great adventure.

The Red Balloon is a complex, compelling children's story. Lamorisse blends themes of loneliness, friendship, loyalty, ostracism and love without making the plot too heavy. Children will delight to magic of having a big red balloon as a friend, and many will identify with Pascal's lack of belonging. While the section involving the neighborhood bullies is upsetting, especially with the ultimate demise of the balloon, the payoff is the image of young Pascal floating over the housetops of Paris, born away from the harsh realities of his life on the will of a clutch of colorful balloons.

The Red Balloon is an example of a children's story with more to say. Adding to the experience are the beautifully-shot photographs used to illustrate the tale. They capture a side of Paris tourists and magazines don't see -- narrow cobbled streets, towering buildings and ancient architecture. With some in stark black and white and others in vivid color, the photos add to the plot instead of simply illustrating the story. The combination makes the book a real treasure. It's part dream, part reality and all classic.

Click here to buy this book, or read more about it at Amazon.com: The Red Balloon

Copyright © by Paul A. Paterson, 2003

Reviewed by Paul A. Paterson:
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