There is something timeless about the ancient tale as told here by DePaola. He gave his final performance to bring a smile to the face of the child Jesus. So ultimately this is a story of joy, despite the sadness of the Clown’s earthly experiences. But then the miracle occurs – the statue of the child Jesus is smiling and holding one of the Clown’s juggling balls. The death of the clown is sudden and will not be expected by most children. He drops dead after an exciting final performance in front of a statue of Our Lady holding Jesus in her lap. I can imagine that some adults will not approve of how the story ends – the Clown dies. There are not many children’s stories in this day and age that portray the inevitable sadness of ageing. The story takes a sad turn as DePaola describes how the ageing Clown begins to lose his touch and is quickly out of favour. His encounter with two Franciscan monks who congratulate him for doing the work of God by bringing smiles to people’s faces gives the Clown something to think about. I enjoyed the simple tale of a street urchin who learns to juggle and develops his craft so that he entertains royalty and wanders the land, carefree and happy. In this book, The Clown of God, DePaola has captured an ancient tale set in early renaissance times and carefully reproduced it as a children’s picture book. Reviewers of his work speak of DePaola’s care and attention to detail and the authentic beauty of his books. Tomie DePaola has enjoyed a loyal following of readers for decades. Each year, he gets over 100,000 fan letters and more than 1,000 invitations to speak.Originally published in 1978, this picture book is different to most. More than 5,000,000 copies of his books have been sold. His dream, he says, is that at least one of his books or pictures 'will touch the heart of some individual child and change that child's life for the better.' Tomie dePaola is very popular with his readers. Now, though, he writes and illustrates children's books and paints pictures for galleries.

He painted church murals and taught art, too. At different times, Tomie dePaola has designed posters, greeting cards, and stage sets. Now Tomie dePaola works in a very old barn at his home in New Hampshire. (He also wanted to be a singer and tap dancer!) His parents bought his art supplies and let him work in a special space in the attic. The Italianate aspects of the setting are beautifully realized.” The Horn BookĪbout the Author: By the age of four, Tomie dePaola knew what he wanted to be when he grew up: an artist and writer. “The full-color pictures with subtle tonal modulations are an integral part of the design of the lumious pages full of movement and vitality. Much like the story of the widow’s mite, this touching tale is based upon a French legend about a clown who has lost everything and gives the only gift he can to the Christ Child.

The Clown of God by Tomie dePaola