This work—in which the author describes the day when as a child he was chosen to be Jesus for the Feast of Saint Joseph—has been characterized as a poem in prose or as a basic canticle for celebrating life. The setting is pastoral Sicily shortly before World War II, and a child from a poor family has been entrusted to be the Messiah for one momentous day. A musical band and parade of dignitaries herald his arrival as he rides into the village on a she-ass. The priest presents him with the church key, supplicants ask him for favors and miracles as he presides over a great feast, and he wishes to heal his sick playmate Nico and bring the dead back to life. The little Jesus is transformed by this magnanimous experience, and he learns that the greatest miracle is volersi bene—to love one another.
In the tradition of Saint-Exupéry’s The Little Prince and Cervantes’ Don Quixote, The Little Jesus of Sicily is an engaging, whimsical novella which works as a children’s story as well as a thought-provoking adult fable. Imagination, poetry, and faith come together seamlessly as Pasqualino asks simple but fundamental questions of existence. His eloquent wisdom is matched by Rozier’s deft and sensitive translation, winner of the 1996 Renato Poggioli Translation Award from the PEN American Center.
Beautifully illustrated with original drawings by University of Arkansas professor of art Ken Stout, this book tells a timeless tale that honors and celebrates the humanity of all people, regardless of age, time, place, or culture. It will be enjoyed, over and over again, by all readers.