From Publishers Weekly
Frederic Clement's The Merchant of Marvels and the Peddler of Dreams (1995), trans. by Emma Cole, the tale of Frederick Knick-Knack and his quest for the perfect birthday gift for the friend who has everything, returns. Creamy, heavyweight pages absorb poetically arranged text alongside photos of a feather in a box, foil-wrapped candies and a tiny drawing of "three scarlet shrimp from the Outer West Indies."
Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
Book Description
What to give the person who has everything? This is the dilemma of Frederick Knick-Knack, who surely must have, somewhere in his bags and boxes, his chests and cases, his collection of collections, the ideal gift for his friend Alice. Published in France to considerable acclaim in 1997, and translated into English with more than 30,000 copies sold, The Merchant of Marvels is now available in a new format for readers to rediscover this world of wonders. How will Frederick convey his most perfect love with just one gift? A ticket for a thousand and one flights on a thousand and one nights? Perhaps a marble made by Merlin the Enchanter? Somehow, somewhere he will find the gift like no other, the perfect present. The Merchant of Marvels is an exuberant marriage of word and illustration, its pages rich with finely crafted objets d'art, line drawings, and breathtaking watercolors. Imbued with magic, mystery, and enchant ment, this emerging classic is the quintessential gift book a wonderful story filled with unimaginably beautiful allegory, and a true expression of love and friendship.
