PRINCE BEAR

A satirical fable from a well-known German author-illustrator: In the idyllic long ago, any bear could kiss a princess and become a prince; and any princess could kiss a bear and become a bear. Alas, progress brings change: forests are cut down and all the bears wish to be princes, while the princesses--daunted by raucous, picketing bears--lock themselves in their castle. This comic use of fairy, tale elements might have been much more developed without becoming too didactic; there are several ideas that are introduced only to be dropped, e.g., the bears having to get hunting licenses. Still, Heine's watercolors are always of interest.