Gnomes (book)

The book is written like a biology book, describing the habitat of the mythical creatures known as gnomes (Dutch: kabouter). In the book, Huygen and Poortvliet say they have spent at least twenty years observing them and call their study the "first work of consequence on the subject to be published since Wunderlich's bulky and dubious treatise De Hominibus Parvisimis appeared in 1580". It describes every aspect of the mythical creatures. They are very small ("weight less than one pound and stand six inches high") and can live upwards of 400 years. The female gnome is generally smaller than her male counterpart, and her clothing is grey instead of blue. A gnome pregnancy takes 12 months, and they always have twins, who live with their parents for at least a hundred years. The gnomes also used to live in society alongside humans, especially in Europe, but due to pollution and deforestation they have slowly retreated to their secret homes. The book ends with a message, asking people to stop attacking one another, as well as reminding human society to stop destroying the environment. == Themes ==

According to Adams and van Straten, the protagonist of the book embodies the "shared world view and values" of the authors: the gnomes revere nature and are tempered creatures. They show "the moral didacticism of Poortvliet", who loved nature since his youth and was an advocate for "selectful (sic) and respectful hunting." The gnomes from the book are also guided by Huygen's "medical compassion", as described by Poortvliet. Additionally, the gnomes in the book are based on the Dutch "kabouter", a word that was also associated at the time to a "nascent environmental movement" happening in Amsterdam. == History ==

Before working together on the book, Wil Huygen and Poortvliet used to hunt together, and were members of the Royal Association of Dutch Hunters. Publication The book was originally published in The Netherlands with the title Leven en werken van de Kabouter in 1976 by Van Holkema & Warendorf, an imprint of Uitgeverij Unieboek at the time. Poortvliet, who had been working as an independent illustrator since 1968 at the advice of C.A.J. van Dishoeck, Unieboek's Director of Publishing, had his books published by the company from 1970. The book's publishing rights for the United States and Canada were acquired by Harry N. Abrams. as well as a pop-up book by John Strejan, new books detailing aspects of the lives of the gnomes were released in the following years: • • • • == Reception ==

Writing for The New York Times, Richard Lingeman compared Poortvliet's drawings to those of Norman Rockwell, "though softer and fuzzier". Lingeman also noted that the gnomes, although somewhat similar in design to the Seven Dwarves, do not share Disney's "manipulative cuteness", and instead are closer to drawings of nature. The reviewer said the same about Huygen's writing, saying it had a "stolid Dutch thoroughness running through". In a review for the Los Angeles Times, Jack Smith described Gnomes as "one of those remarkable books which represent an author's almost obsessive dedication to a single subject". Smith also commented on the writing, saying that it was able to "lift above the tedious" present in some of the less interesting sections of the book, such as when the internal organs of the gnomes are described. He also praised "charming illustrations" by Poortvliet. Gnomes became a bestseller in the United States, and is considered to be the work that made Poortvliet internationally famous. The book turned out to be a major financial success to the American publisher, which led to the creation of several spin-off books about the life of gnomes, as well as other commercial products—such as clothing, dolls, games and jewelry—which, by 1999, had made the publisher over $10 million in gross revenue. == Adaptations ==

Gnomes was adapted in a 1980 television film of the same name, directed by Jack Zander. The rights for the movie were bought in 1979 by Thomas W. Moore, and it was the first animated feature film by Zander. In Spain The book was published as El libro secreto de los gnomos (The Secret Book of Gnomes) in 1980 by Montana (now part of Random House Mondadori) in Spain. It was adapted into a cartoon show, David, el Gnomo (English: The World of David the Gnome) in 1985 by BRB Internacional. In 1987, a spin-off of the show based on the books, La llamada de los gnomos (English: Wisdom of the Gnomes) was released. ==See also==