Gnomes (book) facts for kids
English cover
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| Author | Wil Huygen |
|---|---|
| Original title | Leven en werken van de kabouter |
| Illustrator | Rien Poortvliet |
| Country | The Netherlands |
| Language | Dutch |
| Genre | Children's literature |
| Publisher | Van Holkema & Warendorf |
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Publication date
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1976 |
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Published in English
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1977 |
| Media type | |
| Pages | 212 |
| ISBN | 9026949588 |
| OCLC | 4188345 |
| LC Class | PT5881.18.U9 L47 |
| Followed by | The Secret Book of Gnomes |
Gnomes, originally published in Dutch in 1976 as Leven en werken van de kabouter (lit. Life and work of the gnomes), then released in English in 1977, is a fiction book written by Wil Huygen and illustrated by Rien Poortvliet. The book explains the life and habitat of gnomes in an in-universe fashion, much as a biology book would do, complete with illustrations and textbook notes.
The book was well received by critics. Huygen's writing, which mixed physiology with fiction, and Poortvliet's drawings, which used a natural style and watercolor, were both praised. Gnomes sold almost a million units after its first year of being published in the United States. Its financial success led to the creation of several spin-off books about the same fictional creatures, as well as many other products, such as toys, clothing and games.
Contents
Synopsis
The book is written like a biology book, describing the habitat of the mythical creatures known as gnomes (Dutch: kabouter). In the book, Huygen and Poortvliet say they've spent at least twenty years observing them and call their study the "first work of consequence on the subject to be published since Wunderlich's bulky and dubious treatise De Hominibus Parvisimis appeared in 1580".
It describes every aspect of the mythical creatures. They are very small ("weight less than one pound and stand six inches high") and can live upwards to 400 years. The female gnome is generally smaller than her male counterpart, and her clothing is grey instead of blue. A gnome pregnancy takes 12 months, and they always have twins, who live with their parents for at least a hundred years.
The gnomes also used to live in society alongside humans, specially in Europe, but due to pollution and deforestation they've slowly retreated to their secret homes. The book ends with a message, asking people to stop attacking one another, as well as reminding human society to stop destroying the environment.
Adaptations
Gnomes was adapted in a 1980 television film of the same name, directed by Jack Zander. The rights for the movie were bought in 1979 by Thomas W. Moore, and it was the first animated feature film by Zander.
In Spain
The book was published as El libro secreto de los gnomos (The Secret Book of Gnomes) in 1980 by Montana (now part of Random House Mondadori) in Spain. It was adapted into a cartoon show, David, el Gnomo (English: The World of David the Gnome) in 1985 by BRB Internacional. In 1987, a spin-off of the show based on the books, La llamada de los gnomos (English: Wisdom of the Gnomes) was released.
Images for kids
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upright 0.7
See also
In Spanish: El libro secreto de los gnomos para niños
