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Valeria Docampo
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Agnès de Lestrade
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Phileas's Fortune: A Story About Self-Expression Paperback – April 1, 2010

by Agnes De Lestrade (Author), Valeria Docampo (Illustrator)
4.9 4.9 out of 5 stars 31 ratings
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In a strange land where people must buy and swallow the words they wish to speak, Phileas hopes to communicate his love to Cybele using the small vocabulary he has been able to afford.
Previous page
  1. Reading age
    6 years and up
  2. Print length
    32 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Grade level
    1 - 2
  5. Dimensions
    9.75 x 0.2 x 9.75 inches
  6. Publisher
    Magination Pr
  7. Publication date
    April 1, 2010
  8. ISBN-10
    1433807920
  9. ISBN-13
    978-1433807923
  10. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

K-Gr 4–A young boy lives in a strange land where people must buy and swallow the words they need in order to speak. Those who can't afford expensive words must resort to using dull, boring, discarded terms found in trash cans and gutters, and old-fashioned, useless words that go on sale. Occasionally, if they're lucky, they can catch a few good words floating in the air. Phileas desperately wants to wish his friend Cybele a happy birthday and profess his love, but unlike the bully Oscar, who has enough money to blurt out his feelings, He can't afford the right words. Instead, he smiles at her and, with all the love in his heart, utters “cherry!” “ruby!” “chimes!” Cybele doesn't have any words either, so she simply gives Phileas a kiss, to which he responds with a word he has been saving for just the right occasion: “again!” The exquisite and evocative sepia-tone paintings, highlighted with bold, vibrant reds, beautifully illustrate the poetic text and breathe life into the characters. Demonstrating that what we say is not nearly as important as how we say it, this import provides a wonderful springboard for discussing the power of words and the importance of honesty and sincerity. It will be a welcome addition to picture-book collections and useful to teachers engaged in values education.Rachel Kamin, North Suburban Synagogue Beth El, Highland Park, IL
© Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Magination Pr; 1st edition (April 1, 2010)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 32 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1433807920
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1433807923
  • Reading age ‏ : ‎ 6 years and up
  • Grade level ‏ : ‎ 1 - 2
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 8.8 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 9.75 x 0.2 x 9.75 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.9 4.9 out of 5 stars 31 ratings

About the authors

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  1. Valeria Docampo

    Valeria Docampo

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    Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

    Valeria began to draw driven by the desire to capture the poetry of everyday things: the children and dogs' glance, the shape of plants, the sound of the autumn dry leaves and the aroma of breakfast. Born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, her academic background is in Fine Arts. She graduated from the University of Buenos Aires with a degree in Graphic Design & Visual Communication, where she practiced as a teacher.

    Over the past 6 years she has been dedicated to children illustration. She has illustrated for many publishers in Argentina, Mexico, Puerto Rico, USA, Great Britain, France, Belgium, Spain and Greece. In her work she uses both manual and digital techniques and investigates the use of new methods and materials in a constant pursuit of new expressive forms. Recently she was honored to participate in the exposition of the 30 most representative illustrators of Argentina at Bologna Children Bookfair's 2008.

    One of her last books "La Grande Fabrique de Mots" has been published in 9 languages: French, Dutch, Slovenian, Korean, Chinese, English, German, Spanish and Catalan.

    See more on the author's page
  2. Agnès de Lestrade

    Agnès de Lestrade

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    Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

    Discover more of the author’s books, see similar authors, read author blogs and more

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Customer reviews

4.9 out of 5 stars
4.9 out of 5
31 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

jojonick
5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing
Reviewed in the United States on October 31, 2010
Verified Purchase
I can't recommend this book enough to parents who seek to teach their children that less is more and that it's not who you are, but what you do (and how you do it) that matters most. A lovely story. It was a little shorter than I expected, more of a picture book, but the illustrations are stunning. I read it to 3 of our boys ages 10, 5, and 2.5 - and they all enjoyed it on some level (my 5 year old liked it best). It's a deep yet simple message that kids can abosorb differently at different stages. Especially recommended for boys as the dark setting really works to grab their attention while the sweet, powerful message of expressing love is one parents will want their boys to understand.
4 people found this helpful
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Person with Opinions
5.0 out of 5 stars Lovely lovely book
Reviewed in the United States on December 11, 2010
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I picked this up in a local bookstore, read through the entire thing and had everyone with me do the same. It is a beautiful story with interesting and well crafted (though dark) illustrations. I loved it so much that I am buying 7 copies to give away as gifts to my friends, those with and without children. Highly recommended.
5 people found this helpful
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WGenes
5.0 out of 5 stars Teach children true values
Reviewed in the United States on September 20, 2019
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Gorgeous story about true human values, beautiful illustrations.
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Z. HE
4.0 out of 5 stars love story and the beautiful illustration so much we decide ...
Reviewed in the United States on May 21, 2015
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We first found this book in the library, we love the story and the beautiful illustration so much that we decide to buy a copy to keep. It took a while for the book to arrive, and we found some minor damage on the cover page. It is a used copy, so we will accept it.
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Neuromom
5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful book
Reviewed in the United States on February 21, 2013
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This book is really beautiful in both message and art. It's the story of how to express love from the heart, even when there is a shortage of words.
One person found this helpful
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in the United States on January 12, 2016
Verified Purchase
Exactly as described. Smooth transaction
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Melinda
5.0 out of 5 stars Gorgeous
Reviewed in the United States on May 12, 2019
Gorgeous picture book and beautiful story, so profound and sweet. But...what's up with the title? I read it in Spanish, where it's called "The Great Word Factory." I think that's a lot more appealing. Nevertheless, a great book.
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Sussu
5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful and touching.
Reviewed in the United States on November 25, 2013
Beautiful story. That let me dream and think of a bigger story. My boys did not really get it; they're boys, but I was touched by it. Thank you Agnes.
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Top reviews from other countries

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Chevron Girl
5.0 out of 5 stars good
Reviewed in Canada on October 5, 2018
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beautiful book
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Gianluca Memoli
5.0 out of 5 stars The idea and the drawings are amazing! The only thing I do not like is ...
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 15, 2015
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The idea and the drawings are amazing! The only thing I do not like is how the story was translated into English...where a moral was somewhat forced into a beautiful (and somewhat romantic) story. So if you have a chance, read it in another language.
One person found this helpful
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Joaquín
5.0 out of 5 stars Magnífico
Reviewed in Spain on February 2, 2015
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Es un cuento ilustrado magnífico, con una historia muy original y las maravillosas ilustraciones de Valeria Docampo. Para todas las edades
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mrffm
5.0 out of 5 stars Der englische Text ist poetischer als die deutsche Version
Reviewed in Germany on November 29, 2013
Verified Purchase
Dass es ein Buch mit aparten, sehr ansprechenden Illustrationen und einer guten Story ist, haben schon viele geschrieben und ich schließe mich dem vorbehaltslos an. Ich hatte die deutsche und die englische Version zur Auswahl bestellt, weil das zu beschenkende Kind zweisprachig ist, und nur die englische Version behalten, weil sie viel besser zu den zarten, vielsagenden Bildern passt als die etwas dumpfbackig und anbiedernd derbe deutsche, die noch dazu im Sparformat daherkommt, viel kleiner als das Original. Die Sprache ist nicht schwierig, ab dem 3. Jahr Englischunterricht sicherlich gut zu verstehen, empfiehlt sich also durchaus als Geschenk für 13jährige Kinder, die sensibel für solche Geschichten sind.
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Cvetomira H.
4.0 out of 5 stars Boring
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 15, 2020
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Will be taught in school y1 it is the reason I bought it. Talking about having no words and everyone have to buy words to use (or catch them or take them on sale) a boy says he loves and will marry girl and other boy used other words ... I find the kissing part not appropriate.
Nothing interesting, no “story” at all. Gave 4stars because of the beautiful pictures.
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