Before Disney’s “The Lion King,” Jean de Brunhoff immortalized his wife’s story of an elephant king in his book “Histoire de Babar,” published in 1931. Last month, Entertainment One released the adventures of the pachyderm, son of an elephant who sacrifices herself to a poacher to save the herd, to a new generation of children through the two-DVD set, “Babar: The Classic Series.”
This set preserves the original animated series that debuted on HBO in 1989.
While the loss of Babar’s mother and his grief could be unsettling for some young viewers, the rest of his youthful adventures are largely charming and brimming with moral lessons.
“Babar: The Classic Series: The Complete First Season” set of 2 DVDs, $19.98. Unrated. Visit www.amazon.com.
