Renoir and the Boy With the Long Hair

Jean, this story’s handsome, long-haired little boy, happens to have a very famous father—the artist Pierre Auguste Renoir. But the boy also has a problem. Despite Jean’s many protests, his father thinks Jean’s hair is too beautiful to be cut short. This renowned artist loves to use his son as a model in many of his paintings, and he insists that Jean is still young enough to keep his hair long. Meanwhile, the other kids often tease Jean, which makes him quite angry—and well-meaning adults sometimes mistake Jean for a pretty girl, which annoys and embarrasses him. How can he convince his dad that he’s old enough to have short hair? This gently amusing story for children is beautifully illustrated in a manner that resembles the painting style of Jean’s illustrious father, and it includes several illustrations that are faithful copies of Renoir’s paintings. Of course, the senior Renoir finally relents, and young Jean Renoir does get his hair cut. Still later as an adult, Jean becomes famous in his own right as a widely acclaimed film director.