Bambi: A Life in the Woods

by Felix Salten, Steve Johnson (Illustrator), Lou Fancher (Illustrator), Whittaker Chambers (Translator)

Overview

Immerse yourself in a young deer’s world in this resplendent, collectible edition of the richly imagined and vividly illustrated masterpiece that inspired the beloved Disney film.

Bambi lives in a thicket in the forest. From his kind and caring mother, to all the friends he makes among the forest’s inhabitants, to his twin cousins Faline and Gobo, he is surrounded by animals who wish him well. But there are dangers within and surrounding the forest, and all too soon they will make themselves known.

A beautifully written and critically acclaimed classic that has been translated into more than twenty languages and inspired one of the most beloved Disney films of all time, Bambi is an emotionally wrought exploration of family that also serves as a powerful allegory of modern times.

This keepsake edition showcases luminous oil-painting illustrations by Steve Johnson and Lou Fancher and features a soft touch cover, gold foiling, and tip-in artwork.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781442493452
Publisher:	Atheneum Books for Young Readers
Publication date:	03/04/2014
Series:	Scribner Classics
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	192
Sales rank:	472,394
Product dimensions:	9.10(w) x 7.10(h) x 1.00(d)
Lexile:	690L (what's this?)
Age Range:	10 - 18 Years

About the Author

Steve Johnson and Lou Fancher have worked as a creative team for more than twenty-six years, illustrating more than forty-five children’s books, including My Many Colored Days by Dr. Seuss, Maya Angelou’s Amazing Peace, and Margery Williams’s The Velveteen Rabbit, adapted by Lou Fancher. They live with their son in the San Francisco Bay area.

Read an Excerpt

 

That evening when Bambi and his mother were playing tag in the meadow, his mother saw her friend the hare and introduced him to Bambi.

"Good evening, young man," said Hare politely.

Bambi thought the hare's long spoonlike ears, which at times stood bolt upright and at others fell back limply as though they had suddenly grown weak, were funny. Bambi had to laugh.

The hare laughed quickly too, but then his eyes grew more thoughtful. To Bambi's surprise he suddenly sat straight up on his hind legs and said to Bambi's mother, "What a charming young prince. I sincerely congratulate you. Yes, indeed, he'll make a splendid prince in time." And with that, the hare excused himself -- "I have all kinds of things to do tonight" -- and hopped off, ears back, so they touched his shoulders.

Copyright 1928 Simon & Schuster, Inc.
Copyright renewed 1956 by Simon & Schuster, Inc.
Storybook adaptation copyright © 1999 by Janet Schulman

Editorial Reviews

[Salten] has the gift of a tender, lucid style. His observation is next door to marvelous, and he invests the fruits of this observation with pure poetry. His comprehension makes his deer, his screech-owls, his butterflies, grasshoppers and hares, far more exciting to read about than hundreds of human beings who crowd the pages of our novels. -- Books of the Century; New York Times review, July 1928

John Chamberlain

In 1999, Schulman adapted Salten's 1923 novel, bringing the original tale of a young deer's coming of age to a generation more familiar with the Disney animated version. Here, the woodland story, considered by many critics to be the first "ecological" novel, springs to life via Dolan's fine reading. Young listeners will be eager to follow along on Bambi's first frolics in the meadow, where he encounters a magpie, grasshoppers, butterflies and dandelions. By then, listeners will be hooked enough to stay with this recording as Bambi takes in stride the important, if somber, life lessons imparted by his mother, all the while trying to understand why "life is so difficult and dangerous." And when hunters encroach, taking his mother from him, Bambi knows he has to follow the advice of the stag known as the Great Prince: "Listen, smell and see for yourself; live by yourself; find out for yourself." Dolan's comfortable storytelling style conveys all the wonder, awe and self-discovery of the material and does not over-sentimentalize the deeper emotional current that comes with encountering death. A wide range of listeners will find much to appreciate in this more serious (compared to Disney's interpretation) look at a beloved children's character. Ages 6-up. (Jan.) Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.

Publishers Weekly

With its mystical, exultant evocation of nature, and its unwavering depiction of savage human nature, "Bambi" truly is a story for all ages. Steve Johnson and Lou Fancher's Luminous paintings capture, by turns, the radiance of Bambi's forest world, its beauty, terror and stillness, as the seasons pass and Bambi grows into princely maturity.
—Elizabeth Spires

New York Times Book Review

A little different from the Disney version, this CD tells a fuller story of Bambi’s life. While Disney emphasizes Bambi’s relationship with Feline, his mate, this version extends further into his family tree to include cousins and other deer friends. Read smoothly by Frank Dolan in a proper British accent, Bambi’s difficult winter and grief over his mother’s and cousin’s deaths are well done. Frolicking with Feline as a young deer, he grows to fear man. Haunting flute music ends the side. Containing an anti-gun and pro-God message, this refined production provides listeners another side of Bambi’s classic story. A.G.H. © AudioFile 2002, Portland, Maine

JUN/JUL 02 - AudioFile