Extrait du livre The prince of leaves
The Prince of leaves Pascale Vignali Illustrated by Justine Cunha Le Regard Sonore Editions
Once there was a vast forest deep in the heart of Europe. No one knew where it began or where it ended. It was a mysterious realm, peopled by enchanted creatures. Lurking among the branches, hidden in the bushes, in the hollows of tree roots, the unseen sentinels watched over the heart of the forest ... And woe was to anyone who disturbed the peace of those ancient trees!
Many stories are told about the Black Forest, such as that of the Prince of Leaves... It all began one moonlit night… A shadow was wandering from tree to tree, as if it were looking for something.
Suddenly, it noticed an old oak that was taller than all the others ... With great care, the shadow placed a basket at the foot of the tree: SHADOW: Farewell, my little Hans. I love you more than anything but I'm too poor to feed you. May the enchanted forest protect you! The shadow touched the sleeping child one last time and then walked away.
Above, in the dense foliage, two pointed ears pricked up... A bough of the oak bent down to the ground and gently plucked up the basket… Someone grumbled in the tree: HARALDUS: Easy, my old friend, this is precious! Put it next to me ... There, there, like that! ...
The baby opened his eyes and discovered a mop of messy hair, greener-than-green eyes and rough skinned fingers that tickled his cheeks. He laughed and reached up to tug on the elf's nose. HARALDUS : Good evening, little Hans, welcome to the land of the elves! And so was born the friendship between Hans, the child of the black forest, with Haraldus, the benevolent elf with emerald eyes...
Haraldus raised Hans as if he were his son. He taught him to read the stars, understand the language of flowers and talk to the animals. The years passed by ... Hans became a young man. As for Haraldus, his hair was threaded with silver and his greedy little belly had swelled ...
