Prince Silencio

Arch wit and striking artwork mark this Belgian artist's U.S. debut. Herbauts accompanies her fable with a series of frieze-like spreads of crowds whose members jostle for viewers' attention, and recall the paintings of Bruegel. The king of an imaginary country—portrayed as a castle, his shouting mouth the fortress's gateway—rails against the racket around him, and calls out, "Silencio!," so naming his newborn son. He aptly appoints the prince his Minister of Silence. The citizens obey the king's Law of Silence, but spurn the Prince: "At his approach, everyone fell silent. Long painful pauses became part of even the most casual conversations." Caught between his father's tyranny and the scorn of his subjects, cloaked in loud patterns and clashing colors, Prince Silencio—in his sterile white coveralls—evokes compassion. After the king dies, the people let loose, and send Prince Silencio away. Yet they discover that they need him after all: "With the shouts, the singing, the hollers and the hullabaloo, no one could hear anything anymore." When Prince Silencio returns, he does so "softly, between the laughter and the songs. Between the words." His presence rights the balance between the repression of complete silence and the anarchy of constant bellowing. Readers might expect the liberation of the citizenry from the mean king, but the Prince's redemption brings an extra moment of joy. Ages 4-up. (May)