The Sweetest Fig

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Overview

"These figs are very special," the woman whispered. "They can make your dreams come true."—Thus Monsieur Bibot, the cold-hearted dentist, was given two ordinary-looking figs as payment for extracting a tooth from an old woman's mouth. Monsieur Bibot refused to believe such nonsense and proceeded to eat one of the figs for a bedtime snack. Although it was possibly the finest, sweetest fig he had ever tasted, it wasn't until the next morning that Monsieur Bibot realized it indeed had the power to make his dreams come true. While dragging his poor dog, Marcel, out for his walk, he discovered that his strange dream from the night before was becoming all too real. Determined to make good use of the second fig, Monsieur Bibot

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More About This Book

Overview

"These figs are very special," the woman whispered. "They can make your dreams come true."—Thus Monsieur Bibot, the cold-hearted dentist, was given two ordinary-looking figs as payment for extracting a tooth from an old woman's mouth. Monsieur Bibot refused to believe such nonsense and proceeded to eat one of the figs for a bedtime snack. Although it was possibly the finest, sweetest fig he had ever tasted, it wasn't until the next morning that Monsieur Bibot realized it indeed had the power to make his dreams come true. While dragging his poor dog, Marcel, out for his walk, he discovered that his strange dream from the night before was becoming all too real. Determined to make good use of the second fig, Monsieur Bibot learns to control is dreams. But can he control Marcel? Once again Chris Van Allsburg explores the mysterious territory between fantasy and reality in an uncanny tale that will intrigue readers of all ages.

After being given two magical figs that make his dreams come true, Monsieur Bibot sees his plans for future wealth upset by his long-suffering dog.

Editorial Reviews

Publishers Weekly
Van Allsburg swings back into his most mystifying mode with this enigmatic, visually sophisticated tale of Monsieur Bibot, a ``very fussy'' French dentist who is given a pair of magic figs as a form of payment by an impoverished patient. The fruit, he's told, has the power to make dreams come true. The pragmatic Bibot scoffs at this, of course, but learns otherwise after eating one. Accordingly, he makes plans to use the second fig to become the richest man on earth (and to ditch Marcel, his oppressed terrier, for a string of Great Danes). The images in the book are unsettling, even ominous: Bibot lurking in a doorway with a rolled-up newspaper, ready to punish Marcel; Bibot gleefully clutching a pair of pliers as he prepares to extract an old woman's tooth; a frowning Bibot standing, fists clenched in anger, as his patient offers him the figs instead of cash. The dentist is a thoroughly unsympathetic character; readers will rejoice when the long-suffering Marcel gobbles the second magic fig and, in a poetically just ending, reverses the master-slave relationship. The sepia-toned illustrations are classic Van Allsburg, offering a visual study that is downright psychological; the artwork's spare lines and clean surfaces reflect the obsessively orderly Bibot's nature. Adults will appreciate Van Allsburg's acuity, while many children will relish the darker aspects of his story. A significant achievement. All ages. (Oct.)
"Van Allsburg swings back into his most mystifying mode with this enigmatic, visually sophisticated tale . . . A significant achievement."
More Reviews (3) Fewer Reviews
Children's Literature
The Sweetest Fig is about a greedy, cruel dentist, Monsieur Bibot, and his poor dog, Marcel. One day a strange woman comes to him with a sore tooth. Instead of money, she pays him with two magic figs and tells him they will make his dreams come true. Bibot realizes she is telling him the truth when he discovers himself in the streets of Paris dressed in his underwear, just like a dream he'd had the night before. Bibot works hard to dream about being rich. As to the ending... Van Allsburg once again gives it the kind of twist that pleases kids and adult fans.
School Library Journal
Gr 3 Up-Another quietly bizarre and stunning picture book from Van Allsburg. In this modern fairy tale, a Parisian dentist (a prissy and sadistic man who even hates his own dog) is given two magic figs by an old woman who tells him, "`They can make your dreams come true.'" Bibot scoffs. However, after the first fig proves to do exactly that (in a scene in which the dentist walks down the street in his underwear, and then the Eiffel Tower droops over), he realizes how precious they are. Night after night, he hypnotizes himself into dreaming that he is the richest man on earth. Finally, he prepares to eat the second fig. But his dog, Marcel, beats him to it, and the following morning, the dentist wakes up as the helpless pup under a bed, with his own face calling to him, "`Time for your walk. Come to Marcel.'" The Sweetest Fig is a superb blend of theme, language, and illustration, with a very grabbing plot as well. The writing is formal yet direct, using simple, deliberate vocabulary to match the elegant setting and mood. The shades of gray, cream, and brown and the calm, stable design enhance this mood. The angle at which readers view scenes is always intriguing and heightens their involvement. Most children old enough to read this complex book on their own will be fascinated and will return to it again and again. Van Allsburg at his best.-Lauralyn Persson, Wilmette Public Library, IL
Hazel Rochman
Van Allsburg's astonishing picture book quietly reveals the uproar beneath the most orderly facade. The protagonist is a villain: that contemporary image of respectability, a dentist. He's neat and very fussy--spectacles, bow tie, receding hairline, pinky finger bent as he eats. And he's cruel ("If his dog, Marcel, jumped on the furniture, Monsieur Bibot was sure to teach him a lesson"). Everything seems extra controlled, in place, fixed, confined. Then comes the torture scene: an old woman with a toothache begs Bibot for help, and, smiling with relish, he holds her down in the dentist's chair and wrenches out her tooth with steel pliers. She can't pay--we see that she's wild-haired and homeless--but she gives him two figs. "They can make your dreams come true," she tells him. Furious, fists clenched, he shoves her out the door and refuses to give her pills for pain. That night he delicately eats one of the figs, and the next day he finds himself walking on the crowded sidewalk in his underwear: what he dreamed, his nightmare, has come true. What's more, the Eiffel Tower has drooped over, and he remembers that he dreamed that, too. Then, determined to take control, he hypnotizes himself to dream of power and wealth and prepares to eat the second fig The small white dog that's in the background of almost every Van Allsburg book here takes center stage, but you don't realize it at first. Quiet and long-faced, Marcel is confined by furniture and steep steps, held by collar and leash, watching from the floor as his master eats, always seen from behind or above. But when the master prepares to eat the second fig and dream his heart's desire, there's a dramatic reversal. The man turns his back; the dog rises up from the floor and gobbles the fig. The next morning the two are on the floor, but the man is the dog, and it's Marcel who orders, "Time for your walk. The detailed, soft-textured pictures in shades of brown and white have the appearance of framed sepia photographs, with dramatic close-ups as well as an extraordinary sense of depth. Their realistic use of light and changing perspective makes the fantasy story an integral part of the everyday. The surreal view of the tower and its sharp antenna, bent over toward Bibot like a dentist's drill, shocks you into realizing that you've always known it could do that, that this most permanent of soaring landmarks also appears fragile and strange. Van Allsburg's vision makes you aware of what you didn't know you feared Children will recognize the terror, the mystery, and the delicious dream of reversal. It depends on how you see it: your nightmare may be my dearest wish.

Product Details

  • ISBN-13: 9780395673461
  • Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
  • Publication date: 10/28/1993
  • Format: Library Binding
  • Pages: 32
  • Sales rank: 51,752
  • Age range: 8 - 11 Years
  • Lexile: AD530L (what's this?)
  • Product dimensions: 8.50 (w) x 11.00 (h) x 0.13 (d)

Meet the Author

Chris Van Allsburg
Chris Van Allsburg

Chris Van Allsburg is the winner of two Caldecott Medals, for Jumanji and The Polar Express, as well as the recipient of a Caldecott Honor Book for The Garden of Abdul Gasazi. The author and illustrator of numerous picture books for children, he has also been awarded the Regina Medal for lifetime achievement in children’s literature. In 1982, Jumanji won the National Book Award and in 1996, it was made into a popular feature film. Chris Van Allsburg was formerly an instructor at the Rhode Island School of Design. He lives in Rhode Island with his wife and two children.

Biography

Multiple Caldecott Medal winner Chris Van Allsburg grew up in the 1950s in and around Grand Rapids, Michigan. He majored in sculpture at the University of Michigan's College of Architecture & Design and graduated in 1972. He received his M.F.A. in 1975 from Rhode Island School of Design.

After graduate school, Van Allsburgh set up a sculpture studio in Providence, married and settled in the area, and began exhibiting his work in New York City and throughout New England. Around the same time, he became interested in drawing. His wife, Lisa, encouraged him to pursue children's book illustration, putting him in contact with her friend David Macauley, a successful artist and author. Macauley's editor at Houghton Mifflin was impressed by Van Allsburgh's work and advised him to try his hand at illustrating a story of his own. His maiden effort, The Garden of Abdul Gasazi, was published in 1979 and received a Caldecott Honor Medal.

Since that auspicious beginning, Van Allsburgh has gone on to produce a string of wonderfully inventive, critically acclaimed, and award-winning books. He gathers inspiration from unlikely quarters -- the progress of ants across a kitchen counter, crayon streaks in a child's coloring book, a children's board game come to life -- and executes his ideas on a provocative but surefire "What if..." principle.

Among his many awards are two Caldecott Medals -- one for Jumanji, written in 1982 and the other for 1985's The Polar Express; a National Book Award (also for Jumanji); and the Regina Medal for lifetime achievement in children's literature.

Good To Know

Van Allsburg's grandfather owned and operated the East End Creamery and delivered milk and milk products to homes around the Grand Rapids area in yellow and blue trucks.

One of Van Allsburg's childhood homes was a big, Tudor-styled house on a wide, tree-lined street. He used the street as a model for the cover art of what is arguably his most famous book, The Polar Express.

Because so many students at Van Allsburg's high school excelled academically, representatives from the University of Michigan would visit each year to interview interested seniors and admit them on the spot if they met qualifications. During his senior year, Van Allsburg was told about the art program affiliated with the University's College of Architecture & Design and thought it sounded like fun. Although he had never had any formal art classes, he fibbed to the admissions officer, saying he had taken private lessons outside of school.

Two of Van Allsburg's bestselling books, Jumanji and The Polar Express, were subsequently turned into blockbuster movies.

Van Allsburg is not your typical "feel good" children's author. He has been known to handle darker themes, and his stories often involve bizarre worlds and dreamscapes.

In all his stories, Van Allsburg inserts a little white bull terrier modeled after a real-life dog owned by his brother-in-law. (Another popular children's author, David Shannon, does the same thing, but Shannon's pup is a Westie!)

    1. Hometown:
      Providence, Rhode Island
    1. Date of Birth:
      June 18, 1949
    2. Place of Birth:
      Grand Rapids, Michigan
    1. Education:
      University of Michigan College of Architecture & Design, 1972; Rhode Island School of Design, MFA, 1975
    2. Website:
      http://www.chrisvanallsburg.com

Customer Reviews

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Sort by: Showing all of 4 Customer Reviews

  • Posted February 2, 2009

    more from this reviewer

    What if... When You Slept, Your Dreams Came True?

    Chris Van Allsburg's book, THE SWEETEST FIG, is an exquisitely illustrated book that raises the fascinating question, "What if... when you slept, your dreams came true?" This story tells the tale of a mean-spirited dentist, Monsieur Bibot, who lives in Paris, France, with only his small, white dog for a companion. When Bibot receives as payment two small figs from an old woman who can't afford to pay him for his dental services, he is furious. The woman tells Bibot that these figs are special... "they can make your dreams come true." Dreams are clearly something that Bibot cares little for... that is, until he discovers that the old woman was telling him the truth. When he finds himself standing outside a restaurant dressed only in his underwear, and the Eiffel Tower bending down as if it were made of rubber -- he rushes home and begins practicing the art of controlling his dreams. Bibot's attempt to overly-control his life takes a surprising turn, and this story vividly illustrates the point that greed and self-absorption can ruin a man's life. Because the artwork in this book is so exceptionally good and the moral of the story is so delightful, this is one book that parents will love to read to their children again and again!

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    Posted December 28, 2010

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    Posted July 6, 2010

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    Posted August 22, 2009

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