The Three Astronauts

by Umberto Eco

This is a very interesting little book about three astronauts – an American, a Russian, and a Chinese – who all individually depart Earth at the same time on a mission to Mars. Arriving at their destination simultaneously, at first they consider each other to be foreigners and rivals; but the lonely condition on the alien world makes them realize that their differences are inconsequential when compared to what they have in common. This is reinforced when they meet a Martian, and not understanding its strange ways they discover that their enmity has shifted from each other to the real alien – but of course, they soon discover that this strange creature has emotions just as familiar as their own.
The illustrations in the book are by award-winning artist Eugenio Carmi, and consist of colorful watercolors and montages. Surreal and symbolic, the artwork nicely accompanies Eco’s tale of understanding and compassion on another world. The astronauts are depicted by swatches of colored paper rather than as people; the American as a multicolored box of Chiclets, the Russian a red clipping from Pravda, and the Chinese as a yellow ideogram. Other than obviously standing in for whole nations, the overall effect is rather clever, and adds a sort of haunting quality to their lonely sojourn on the planet. The actual Martian is quite cute in a disturbingly alien kind of way, and it is remarkable how you begin to feel sympathy for it considering it is just an expressionless green head on top of a multi-armed torso.
I haven’t heard the reaction of any children yet, but I kinda like it....

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Fiction

First published January 1, 1966

About the author

Umberto Eco was an Italian medievalist, philosopher, semiotician, novelist, cultural critic, and political and social commentator. In English, he is best known for his popular 1980 novel The Name of the Rose, a historical mystery combining semiotics in fiction with biblical analysis, medieval studies and literary theory, as well as Foucault's Pendulum, his 1988 novel which touches on similar themes.

Eco wrote prolifically throughout his life, with his output including children's books, translations from French and English, in addition to a twice-monthly newspaper column "La Bustina di Minerva" (Minerva's Matchbook) in the magazine L'Espresso beginning in 1985, with his last column (a critical appraisal of the Romantic paintings of Francesco Hayez) appearing 27 January 2016. At the time of his death, he was an Emeritus professor at the University of Bologna, where he taught for much of his life. In the 21st century, he has continued to gain recognition for his 1995 essay "Ur-Fascism", where Eco lists fourteen general properties he believes comprise fascist ideologies.

Reviews

[Ted · Rating 4 out of 5]

The three astronauts realized that they were feeling the same feelings … they got to know one another … Suddenly a Martian appeared … He was so different from them, all three felt like fighting him … They decided to kill him with their atomic disintegrators.


The quote compresses to about a six to one ratio the words on three pages of this book.

But … things change.

Umberto Eco wrote this children's book (now, or maybe then, illustrated by Eugenio Carmi) long ago. A decade and a half before he became the world-renowned author of The Name of the Rose (1980)

I was surprised (but maybe shouldn't have been) at the considerable number of words Eco penned to tell the story, though the English translation of those words make it evident that children really are his intended audience.

I would recommend the book for children old enough to handle all the words (most of them easily understandable to say a ten year old), but with one reservation. I found the book fairly difficult and pricey to get hold of. I would guess it's out of print. The English translation was published by Harcourt Brace in 1989.

Frankly, the story Eco tells carries a message for our time that needs to be learned by humans of all ages, applying not only to Martians but to other human beings.

"The Earthlings had learned their lesson by now: Just because two creatures are different they don't have to be enemies.

So each went over to the Martian with his hand extended."



. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Previous review: A Further Range Frost
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Older review: At Lady Molly's A Dance ...

Previous library review: Animalia
Next library review: Diary of a Wimpy Kid

[Kuba Jeziorski · Rating 4 out of 5]

Trzy krótkie historie w formie bajek, ale zawierają drugie dno. Warto się zastanowić jakie jest przesłanie. Książka na kilkanaście minut

[Fugo Feedback · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tenía un lejano recuerdo sobre un cuento que había leído de chico (me había leído mi maestra, bah) en el que unos astronautas se encontraban con un extraterrestre. No recordaba mucho de la historia más allá de que en un momento al extraterrestre le salía humo de la trompa y los astronautas se preguntaban si esa era su manera de llorar (ya que se estaban despidiendo y ellos también lloraban, si mal no recuerdo).
Hoy, mil años después, me vengo a enterar de que se trata de un cuento de Umbero Eco, a quien todavía le debo mil lecturas. Con suerte este libro se gane una relectura por lo menos. Seguro que voy a entender cosas que de chico no entendí y seguro que no voy a saber apreciar cosas que de chico me fascinaron.

[Alyse Liebovich · Rating 5 out of 5]

I saw this book on my coworker's desk and was drawn to the collage-style illustrations and font on the cover. Aside from the fact that this was published in 1989 and uses descriptors like "the Chinese" in reference to one astronaut, the message pervading this quick read (and an actual line taken from its pages) is so relevant to what is happening in this country right now, it brought a tear to my eye:
"Just because two creatures are different they don't have to be enemies." <---You reading this, @RealDonaldTrump?

[Cynthia Egbert · Rating 3 out of 5]

I appreciated this one much more than The Bomb and the General but I still am thinking that Eco does better when writing for adults than writing children's books.

[Eli · Rating 5 out of 5]

«روی زمین یا هر جای دیگر، هر کس شکل و قیافه و شیوه و روش خودش را دارد. مهم این است که تفاوت‌ها را بفهمیم، به آن احترام بگذاریم و بردبار باشیم.»

[Elisabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Finally, Eco I can understand!
Kidding. Mostly...
Adorable, sweet, beautifully illustrated. I'm trying to get my hands on the original Italian for comparison purposes. :)

[Elle · Rating 5 out of 5]

most gorgeous illustrations!

[Las Letras de Titania]

Un libro con tres cuentos cortos escritos como poesía desde la pluma de Umberto Eco y las ilustraciones de Eugenio Carmi. Es la vida contada desde otros finales y la ciencia ficción. ¿Qué pasaría si nos rebelamos contra los gobernantes que quieren las guerras? ¿Qué pasaría si todos nos damos cuenta de que en la diversidad está la verdadera riqueza de la vida? ¿Qué pasaría si en vez de “civilizar” tierras que no conocemos, logramos aprender los unos de los otros y vivir en armonía?

“La bomba y el general”, “Los tres cosmonautas” y “Los gnomos de Gnu” son los tres relatos cortos que componen esta obra de respeto, esperanza, empatía, amor y diversidad. El primero trata de la rebelión de los átomos de una bomba nuclear: se oponen a un general que solo piensa en el poder, y que omite la muerte y el dolor de las guerras. En el segundo, tres astronautas de tres potencias mundiales (Estados Unidos, Rusia y China) se encuentran en Marte. En realidad, no son tan distintos entre sí y en relación con un marciano que creían monstruoso: sí podemos entendernos en medio de nuestras diferencias. En el tercero, un emperador envía a un explorador galáctico a “conquistar” nuevos territorios; sin embargo, lo que descubre es una civilización que le invita a concientizarse de que ellos no son descubiertos: ya existían y tienen cosas maravillosas para aportar a un desarrollo terrestre en armonía con la naturaleza.

Solo somos un punto en medio de un mundo. ¿Alguna vez pensamos en el otro como un ser que merece ser tratado de la misma forma como queremos que lo hagan con nosotros? Empatía. Aprender a escuchar y percibir al otro como un igual, tomar lo que nos pueda dar y aplicarlo, crecer y ser mejores, dejar el odio a un lado, sentir el dolor ajeno y evitar dañarnos. En definitiva, un libro entrañable.

[Jose Cruz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cuento escrito en 1966 por el autor de "El nombre de la rosa", de una forma tan sencilla como para llegar al lector juvenil, como hermosa y directa propia de éste gran maestro de la literatura. Se trata de un cuento con un hermoso mensaje que pone en evidencia el sin sentido de todo tipo de discriminación, que en lugar de unir a las personas las separa por ignorancia y falta de comunicación, que es lo que realmente te hace entender y querer a los demás. Cuento que me ha recordado la famosa frase: "El fascismo es una enfermedad que se cura estudiando".
Cuando leo estos cuentos, como el maravilloso "El príncipe feliz" de Óscar Wilde, reseñado en este blog anteriormente, me encanta comprobar cómo los grandes maestros saben ofrecer tanto en tan pocas líneas. Realmente, un cuento de muy recomendable lectura.

[My Pen Name is Ophelia Wordsworth · Rating 4 out of 5]

The illustrations were gorgeous. A simple and short story about realizing our humanity and what we share. It was written around the time of the Cold War; it is always astonishing to see the same themes repeat themselves, to see who is depicted we the enemy. Interestingly, the Martian is depicted similarly to some of the Hindu gods, to my eye. Not sure if that is intentional.

I was also delighted to discover my copy had been signed by the famous Italian painter and the book's illustrator, Eugenio Carmi! Fun to see that Windsor and Newton paints existed then too (originally published in 1971).

[Adolfo Neto · Rating 5 out of 5]

I recently ventured into reading my first book in Spanish, and it happened to be a children's book. Despite its simplicity, I believe one has to start somewhere on the language-learning journey. The book pleasantly surprised me with its charming illustrations and a heartwarming message of peace. The overall experience was a quick and straightforward read, making it an enjoyable step in my language exploration.

[Tatiana Gomes · Rating 4 out of 5]

História muito interessante que de alguma forma fala dos três paises, potencias economicas mundais, da sua competição, da importância do saber comunicar e compreender as diferenças do outro. Livro interessante para trabalhar questões geopolitica, diversidade e equidade. No âmbito do perfil do aluno enquanto relacionamento interpessoal, linguagens e textos, informação e comunicação.

[Veronica · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute, maybe a little longwinded for a children's book but not as bad as The Gnomes of Gnu. It's a nice message about international cooperation but mostly I can't stop laughing over the fact that the American astronaut is portrayed by a Chiclet gum wrapper.

[Jacqui Busch]

A cool little relic of a children's book. I liked the art they used to depict the American, Russian, and Chinese person-- they abstracted them into candy wrappers instead of making the mistake of drawing stereotypes.

[Kico · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tres cuentecitos moralizantes en plan naif. Edición ilustrada con grabados del pintor de arte abstracto Eugenio Carmi: para coleccionistas.

[Kylie Mogan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such a interesting read. I loved the uniqueness of the illustrations presented throughout the text.

[Alfredo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hoy es completamente inapropiado pero bueh.

[Dave · Rating 4 out of 5]

The message of unity this book conveys is even more necessary now than when it was first written.

[Christopher Hutson · Rating 1 out of 5]

Noble intention but somewhat lame in the execution.

[Bibliothekebohemius · Rating 5 out of 5]

Me encantó mucho la verdad. Sobre todo porque da pie a una doble lectura que tiene que ver con empatía, igualdad, antibelicismo, antiracismo, etc.

[Parker Piccolo Hill · Rating 3 out of 5]

funky little children's book about semiotics and with a crazy collage style.

[taylor · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not my favorite Umberto book but worth the 12 page read. Scientifically suspect as well. I feel the author was trying to talk about something very deep but it was beyond me.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

I saw a teaser for the opera they're making based on this book performed for the International Symposium on Personal and Commercial Space Flight. Among the performers were Sam Donaldson (of ABC News) and my daughter (not of ABC News last I checked). Curious, we decided to seek out a copy of the book.

It's a pretty basic children's book on the theme that people of different cultures are more the same than different. A couple of words of Chinese and Russian well placed helped to bring home differences and similarities. It's a good book for discussing cultures with relatively young children.

There's not to learn of science from this book. The book's Mars is a fanciful vision of trees, canals, birds, and other Martian inhabitants.

The illustrations are largely abstract and the three astronauts are represented by icons. I was amused that the American astronaut is represented by packs of chewing gum.

[Elias Betancurt · Rating 4 out of 5]

"¿Significa esto que vuestro mar está lleno de caca?"

A mí, como a los gnomos de Gnu, la palabra "caca" me da mucha risa. Siempre he sentido una fascinación por los gnomos y los viajes espaciales. Parece extraño mezclar ambos elementos, pero me parece la escusa perfecta para examinar a la humanidad desde otra perspectiva.

De eso tratan estos tres cuentos. Además de ser divertidos, son una invitación a reflexionar sobre nosotros como especie, nuestras aparentes diferencias y las consecuencias de nuestras acciones.

[Erika · Rating 4 out of 5]

Amazing story about thee astronauts from United States, Russia, and China.
Overcoming the difference and understanding eachother.
It's a small book, and yet, there are a lot of things you can learn from it.

（岩波が小さい頃に読んで感動した絵本。
話だけをきいて、瑛子様が図書館で探して来た。
てっきり瑛子様もこの本の事を知ってたのかと思ってたら、違ったらしい。
すごい、知らない本を見つけられるなんて、やっぱり図書館勤務なだけある。）

[Juan Bernal · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's just but three tales, three of those tales that make you think about us, about all we do, all we think we love, all we learned to hate. Three tales that may be not that far away from what we consider real, but are so fantastic that we may never experience something of the sort in our petty world.
An enjoyable book with enjoyable art.

[Claudia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Morality tale, children's book. Three Astronauts (American, Russian and Chinese) all want to reach Mars first. All three get there at the same time. Cold night, all bond. Morning they see a Martian and want to kill it. Baby bird falls and all are moved. Martian is saved by UNDERSTANDING.

[Vanessa · Rating 4 out of 5]

not the best literary work for children, but a superb moral for children and adults alike. Illustrations were cute.

[Mckinley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun illustrations. Good story. Just rewatched Enemy Mine last night - must be a theme for the day.