A modern fable for children and adults: a story of one man’s quest for eternal life and how finds it in the most extraordinary of ways—in the grand tradition of Saint-Exúpery’s The Little Prince

When we first meet 93-year-old millionaire Baron Lamberto, he has been diagnosed with 24 life-threatening ailments—one for each of the 24 banks he owns! But when he takes the advice of an Egyptian mystic and hires servants to chant his name over and over again, he seems to not only get better, but younger.

Except then a terrorist group lays siege to his island villa, his team of bank managers has to be bussed in to help with the ransom negotiations, and a media spectacle breaks out . . .

A hilarious and strangely moving tale that seems ripped from the headlines—although actually written during the time the Red Brigades were terrorizing Italy—Gianni Rodari’s Lamberto, Lamberto, Lamberto has become one of Italy’s most beloved fables. Never before translated into English, it’s a reminder, as Rodari writes, that “there are things that only happen in fairytales.”

What makes the story interesting is adroit blending of the all too believable with the incredible – the fabulism and humor blended with the more serious aspects like media spectacles  and the threat of terrorism. The characters interact in humorous but totally believable and understandable ways. We recognize the stock type characters (dedicated butler, lazy but greedy nephew, board of directors and their secretaries, and the townspeople) and enjoy the humor of Lord Lamberto’s new-found youth.

When the band of Lamberto’s take over the island and issue their demands the story takes a turn toward the even more incredible but at the same time very serious.

But there is a surreal quality to it and there was little resolution to the story – it just kind of ends (it did, however, include a twist I didn’t see coming which is always fun). In this way it reflects its connection to classic fables which often lack the tidy resolutions and clear messages we often produce today. But for me, something just didn’t click – there seemed to be no rules or overarching template.  Anything can happen and probably will; which again, can be fun but also frustrating.  The Complete Review also found it a bit too freewheeling and disjointed.

An interesting and fun read but I didn’t find it as poignant as many other reviewers.

Perhaps it is the nature of a children’s book to be too simplistic for “adults” or that we seek to make sense of everything when the author isn’t attempt to do so.  And I will confess that I often fail to “get” the symbolism and/or underlying meaning behind fables and allegories or stories with these elements.  So  as always, your mileage may vary depending on taste and mood.

But if you like lighthearted and whimsical stories with a touch of the fantastic this is one you will enjoy.

Related articles

• 46 Down, 6 To Go – “Lamberto, Lamberto, Lamberto” (52 Books, 52 Weeks) (largeheartedboy.com)

I seem to be back on a fables, myths and legends type kick again (not that I ever got off it). And certainly Bill Willingham‘s Peter & Max fits right in to that theme.

As the subtitle notes (a Fables novel) this book is an outgrowth of Willingham’s popular Fables series of comics:

Fables is a unique series imagining that all of your favorite nursery rhyme, storybook, and fable characters are real and living in New York City.

The characters have all escaped from their own homelands and gathered in a small area of New York. Of course, this is only the human looking characters. All of the animals, Puss in Boots, the Three Little Pigs, Mother Goose, and more, live in an area of upstate New York Known as The Farm.

I have not read any of these comics but the hook was intriguing.  I immediately thought of the Sister’s Grimm series but with an adult perspective rather than YA. Since I love SG I wanted to check out this similar sounding take on fairy tales. The fact that it came with illustrations only added to my interest.

And those expectations were largely met. Peter & Max is a creative and interesting reworking of the Pied Piper story. It left me wondering if this is a one off building on the comics or whether we can expect more novel exploration of Fabletown.

There is always a choice involved in introducing a fantasy adventure of this sort. You either dive right into the adventure and fill in the background and unique facets of the world the characters inhabit as you go along or you try and set up the story first with some explanation right up front.

Willingham goes with the later. And the book starts a little slow as a result. It takes a while to set the scene, understand the concepts and get the characters introduced. But once you get that territory covered it becomes a compelling story.

As can often be the case, the bad guy really steals the show. Willingham flashes back to tell the story of the Pied Piper.  Peter is the younger brother in a traveling musical family. His older brother Max is melancholy bordering on angry. When his father gives the heirloom – and magical – flute to Peter a deep resentment is born.  And when his family (and the Peep family – including Bo – as well) is forced to flee into the heart of the Black Forest Max takes the opportunity to give in to his darker side in a rather gruesome way.

Peter and Max both end up in the town of Hamelin – of rats and children fame – but take very different paths to get there. Willingham alternates chapters telling their stories (as well as the modern day Peter).

Peter, who ends up part of a secret society in Hamelin, is far from the clear cut ethical hero, and his story has some interesting aspects, but Max is the strongest character by far.

He just has this sort of evil charisma that animates the story. He is lazy and ignorant in many ways but has a single minded determination to explore the depths of dark power.  This drive, and the magic flute he is inadvertently given, prove more than enough to give him power beyond what most can imagine. But he keeps a certain sarcastic and almost flippant attitude throughout. He is an incredibly powerful and dangerous person. He is a cruel and narcissistic jerk. But as a character he jumps of the page unlike any of the others.

Peter by contrast seems weighed down by the cares of life. And just when he might be able to put that behind him and start a new life with his wife Bo Peep tragedy strikes in the form of his brother.

The novel starts with Peter seeking to find his long lost brother who is loose on the world again. And the novel ends with their confrontation in this world. But the real heart of the story to my mind is Max’s development into the monster he became and the way Peter is ultimately called to attempt to destroy his brother.

Having read this book and none of the comics I have to wonder if a sequel is planned. In some ways you could see this as just a “novel as introduction” to the comics; hoping the book will convince non-comic readers to cross over.

On the other hand, there are some flaws that would be lessened by a sequel. All of that background and introduction for example would be wasted to some degree if there are no further books. As a stand alone it could have been much tighter in my opinion. You don’t have to explain as much if the only story you are going to tell is Peter & Max.

The sequel of sorts appended to the novel, in comic form, leads me to believe that this is just a stand along offering. The fact that this book takes place prior to the comics and leads into them strengthens that argument I would think.

Even so, Peter & Max is a creative and entertaining twist on the story of the Pied Piper and a nice introduction to the work of Bill Willingham. And Max is one of the better, and more unique, evil characters I have come across. It has a dry wit and manages to mix dark and adult topics with humor and adventure but without going over the top.

Obviously comic fans, and those already familiar with the Fables universe, will want to see what Willingham does in novel form.  But those who enjoy fantasy adventure and stories with myths, fables and legends as background will also enjoy Peter & Max.

The first focus, or theme if you will, of this year is myths and fables.  The idea is to explore in both fiction and non, the idea and practice of myths, fables, and stories.  Now, I am not an academic and don’t plan on presenting an online seminar or anything. It just means my reading, and thus my reviews, will be tied together by this thread.  Not all of it necessarily, but a chunk of it.

Just to give you a taste of what is coming, here are some of the books that will be reviewed and discussed in the coming days and weeks:

• Mister Pip by Lloyd Jones
• The Magician’s Book: a Skeptic’s Adventures in Narnia by Laura Miller
• The Narnian by Alan Jacobs
• A number of books from Cannongate Myth Series
• A number of young adult fantasy books.

I hope to be able to have the time and energy to write about all of this in a way that presents a semi-coherent theme.  Not by explicitly tying them all together but simply by allowing you to see the similar ideas and threads that naturally connect them.

I also have planned some reading on intellectuals I have long admired and studied.  Two in particular I will be reading on this year are William F. Buckley and George F. Kennan.  So stay tuned for that as well.

I hope this process will help me focus my writing and at the same time make reading this site more enjoyable and interesting.  Maybe the miscellany will be a little more collected that way.