"There was an old house in Paris, with vines crawling all over the walls, and in it lived twelve little girls, always in two rows..."
Remember where this classic began? That's right, it's the Madeleine series that has been loved by generations of readers at home and abroad! This time, though, I'm going to introduce madeleine not by Ludwig Bemelmans, but by his grandson, Johann Bemelmans Marciano!
Like his maternal grandfather, John was a gifted painter and writer who, though he had never met his maternal grandfather, could always feel his presence through the stories told by his mother and maternal grandmother. Through an in-depth study of his grandfather's work, John eventually succeeded in writing Madeleine's story.
The new version of Madeleine's stories include "Madeleine and the Old House in Paris", "Madeleine and the Little Candle", "Madeleine and the Cat of Rome", etc., and the consistent style of writing and painting allows readers to have a full sense of memory and intimacy from the first glance of seeing the cover. Compared with his grandfather, John's use of color is more bold and vivid, and the overall appearance is more vivid and lively.
So what is the highlight of John's new version of Madeleine? I summarized the following three points, let's take a sneak peek!
The first reason why Madeleine's story is so good is, of course, that the little protagonist Madeleine is too popular!
In this old house in Paris, there are obviously twelve identical little girls, and the youngest Madeleine has the most prominent personality, which is unforgettable. Some people described Madeleine as a "red-haired girl who is difficult to tame", although a little helpless, but could not hide the love and fascination with Madeleine.
Madeleine is a maverick. After watching her grandfather's Madeleine series, you know that Madeleine has never taken the usual path, she once walked on the bridge railing, and as a result, she fell into the river, triggering an emergency rescue. In the new version of madeleine, if you look closely, you will find madeleine dancing on the roof, gliding quickly on the handrail of the stairs, hanging upside down on the crooked trunk of the tree... In popular parlance, Madeleine was a mischievous woman.
Madeleine was brave and fearless. In her grandfather's version of madeleine's series, she dared to say "Yawn" to the tiger cage, calmly underwent appendicitis surgery, and even dared to follow the gypsy circus everywhere to adventure. In the new version of Madeleine, Madeleine is as brave and fearless as ever, she dares to unmask the little friend who pretends to be a ghost, she dares to help the weeping ghost find her beloved telescope, she dares to sneak out of the White House with the daughter of the leader, and she dares to launch a chase game with the thief who steals.
Madeleine is assertive, wise and loving. Don't look at the little Madeleine is always in trouble because of not taking the usual road, and often because she is too adventurous and frightening, but at key moments, you can always see that she exudes a light of opinion, wisdom and love. In Madeleine and the Old House in Paris, when she encounters a weeping ghost, she bravely steps forward to ask about the situation and single-handedly plans a way to retrieve the ghost telescope. In Madeleine and the Little Candle, the little candle who can't go out for many years because of her special status (the daughter of the head of government) has the greatest wish to see the outside world. When the kind Madeleine learned about it, with the help of a magician, she secretly took a small candle to Washington at night, and finally returned to the White House unconsciously before dawn, bringing a happy memory that the lonely little candle would never forget.
How did the inspiration come from such a wonderful Madeleine story? It is said that Ludwig Bemelmans (maternal grandfather) originally created made Madeleine's name from his wife, the prototype is his daughter, and the details of the story are born in an accidental car accident that allows him to see a crack in the shape of a rabbit on the ceiling of the hospital, and hear the story of a nun in the next room taking care of a little girl who performs appendicitis surgery... Fragments of inspiration are combined to form the classic Madeleine collection.
These new versions of madeleine stories created by John (grandson) also have interesting sources of inspiration. It is said that the book Madeleine and the Cat of Rome was published thanks to John's experience living in Rome for several years. Rome's architecture and golden lights, as well as the sheer number of free-spirited cat inhabitants, impressed John with the eternal city of Rome. The Roman people loved cats, so the thief who stole Madeleine's camera in the story risked crime to steal things in order to feed dozens of stray cats. Theft was wrong, of course, so Madeleine finally came up with a way to publish adoption ads so that all cats had a reliable home.
As for the inspiration for madeleine and The Little Candle, it can even be traced back to John's maternal grandfather's friendship with First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy. John's maternal grandfather had already conceived a story of Madeleine's visit to Caroline, and was ready for the First Lady herself to write the text. Unfortunately, before the story was finished, my grandfather died. So John, on top of his grandfather's initial inspiration, based on his own understanding, completed the story that took place in the White House. In this way, the meaning of inheritance in the story is even stronger.
Although most of us may not be able to go abroad to see the world in our lifetime, this does not prevent us from understanding the world through various other channels and appreciating the customs and customs of the world.
Whether it is the Madeleine series created by my grandfather or the new version of Madeleine created by John, there is a common feature, that is, there are many landmarks in the picture book where the story takes place. For example, the Eiffel Tower in Paris, Notre Dame Cathedral, the Louvre, the Jardin du Luxembourg and so on.
In the new version of madeleine's story created by John, the landmark buildings or scenes that appear in the picture book are carefully marked at the end of the text. For example, in "Madeleine and the Little Candle", there is the Oval Office of the White House, Lincoln's bedroom, and the South Lawn, and during the night tour of Washington, Madeleine and the Little Candle see the Lincoln Memorial, the Capitol Dome, the Jefferson Memorial, the Washington Monument, and the ring of the book is arlington National Cemetery, where John's grandfather rested.
Through the simple and evocative brushes of Ludwig Bemelmans and John's grandchildren, we can get a glimpse of the iconic architecture and rich urban style of the world's major cities, and the different main colors represent different urban personalities, just like Madeleine's unique red hair.
In short, the Madeleine series of stories, whether from text content or from picture creation, is a classic that is worth savoring repeatedly. If you haven't read the Madeleine series, you must get to know this quirky and beloved Madeleine. If you've already read your grandfather's version of madeleine' series, I don't think you'll need to say much, and you can't wait to see the new madeleine created by your grandson John!