Originally published in 1945 as Uorsin, this classic Romansch-Swiss picture-book presents the story of a young boy named Ursli, and the overnight Alpine adventure that results from his determination to carry one of the larger bells, in his village's annual Procession of the Bells, held to drive out Winter, and welcome in Spring. Told in rhyming couplets, the tale follows Ursli as, chores completed, he rushes to his Uncle Gian's farmhouse with the other boys, only to come up with the smallest, tinkliest bell of all! Determined not to be a laughing-stock, Ursli heads for his family's summer hut, on the mountainside, where he knows he can find a very large bell indeed...

I enjoyed A Bell for Ursli, not least because it depicted a cultural tradition with which I was entirely unfamiliar - knowing nothing of the pastoral lifestyle, or seasonal village customs of the Engadine - in a way that fit naturally into an engaging story about a little boy. The narrative itself felt a little forced, with a rhyme-scheme that didn't always convince me, but I set that down to translation. The illustrations, done by Alois Carigiet, have a vintage style and aesthetic sensibility that feel very appropriate for the story. All in all, an engaging book! I think my own response was somewhat less enthusiastic than I had hoped, given this book's status as a "classic," but I was sufficiently impressed that I will seek out Selina Chönz and Alois Carigiet's Florina and the Wild Bird. ( )