King Matt the First facts for kids
1986 US edition
|
|
| Author | Janusz Korczak |
|---|---|
| Original title | Król Maciuś Pierwszy |
| Translator | Richard Lourie |
| Cover artist | Brian Selznick (2004 US English edition) |
| Country | Poland |
| Language | Polish |
| Genre | Children's novel |
| Publisher | Farrar, Straus and Giroux |
|
Publication date
|
1922 |
|
Published in English
|
1 January 1986 |
| Media type | Print (Hardcover, paperback) |
| Pages | 330 (2004 paperback edition) |
| ISBN | 0-374-34139-7 (1st US edition) |
| Followed by | King Matt on the Desert Island |
King Matt the First (which in Polish is Król Maciuś Pierwszy) is a popular children's book. It was written by Janusz Korczak, a Polish author and doctor. He was also a teacher who cared deeply about children. The story is about a young king's exciting adventures. It also talks about many changes Matt tries to make to help his people, especially kids. Some of these ideas were even used by Korczak in his own orphanage. This book is very famous in Poland, much like Peter Pan is in English-speaking countries. It was the first of Korczak's stories to be translated into English.
Contents
Story of King Matt
This book tells the story of Matt, a young prince. He suddenly becomes king after his father passes away.
Matt's Early Reign
When Matt first becomes king, he wants to make big changes. He especially wants to make life better for children. But even with his good intentions, things don't always go as planned. Sometimes his ideas lead to funny problems, and sometimes to serious ones.
Matt tries to read and answer all his mail himself. He soon finds there is too much mail for one person. He realizes he needs help from his secretaries. He gets frustrated with his government ministers. He even has them arrested! But he quickly learns that he doesn't know enough to run the country alone. So, he has to let the ministers go. He then creates a constitutional monarchy. This means the king shares power with a government.
Adventures and Challenges
When a war starts, Matt doesn't want to stay safe in his palace. He sneaks away and joins the army. He pretends to be a normal peasant boy. He almost becomes a prisoner of war! A friendly journalist offers to start a "royal newspaper" for him. Matt agrees. Much later, he finds out that the news he gets is carefully changed. The journalist was hiding bad things done by Matt's best friend.
Matt tries to get children from all over the world to march and demand their rights. This makes other kings angry. He also falls in love with a princess from Africa. In the end, three foreign armies invade his country. Matt is overthrown and sent away to a desert island.
What Happens Next
The story continues in a second book. It is called King Matt on a Desert Island. This book was published in the same year as the first one. It was translated into English in 1990. The sequel shows how Matt grows as a person while he is alone. Later, he returns home. He helps bring back democracy to his country.
Important Lessons
Janusz Korczak often used fairy tales in his books. He did this to help young readers get ready for life's challenges. He wanted them to learn how to make good and responsible decisions as they grew up.
Images for kids
-
2004 US edition
-
2000s cartoon series adaptation
