Life Lessons from Two Lovable Lions

     Often, during the course of our childhood, there is one (or hopefully, more than one) story that always stands out among all of the others.  A book that will always put an instant smile on your face simply by just hearing it's title.  For me, Dandelion, written and illustrated by the late Don Freeman, (the winner of the Caldecott Medal, Freeman also wrote the 1968 classic, Corduroy) occupies that special place in my heart.  It is, at least in my humble opinion, an overlooked classic that touches on the strength and uniqueness that one will always discover when you realize that you should always remain true to yourself.

     As our tale begins, Dandelion wakes one morning, and goes outside to his mailbox to collect his mail, when he spots an envelope with his name addressed on the front with very fancy lettering.  Inside the envelope, he discovers an invitation that states:
     "Dear Dandelion,
          You are invited to my tea-and-taffy party on Saturday afternoon at half-past three.  Come as you are.
       Sincerely,
        Jennifer Giraffe " (needless to say, at the tender age of six, I was thrilled to see my name in a book, even if my name belonged to a giraffe!)

     An excited Dandelion quickly realizes that today is Saturday, and the party is only hours away!  So, in order to look presentable for the party, he quickly rushes into town and decides that his mane needs a trim, only to end up receiving the latest "in" style of lions....complete with a perm!  And, he turns in his simple white sweater for a fancy top hat and coat complete with a cane purchased from none other than "Happy Crane" himself!  A gussied-up Dandelion arrives at Jennifer Giraffe's doorstep, but is only left out in the cold when Miss. Giraffe doesn't recognize her old friend, and fails to let him in.  Shut off from the party, a sad, lonely Dandelion gets caught up in a loud afternoon thunderstorm.  His fancy perm gets wilted; his coat gets soaked, and his snappy hat gets carried off in the wind.  But, Dandelion decides to pull himself together, and when he arrives at Miss. Giraffe's doorstep once again, only this time looking just like Dandelion (except a little more soaked), he is warmly welcomed by all.

Dandelion
Written and Illustrated by Don Freeman
Publisher: Penguin Books
ISBN: 9780140502183
For ages 4 thru 7
Retails for $6.99 (Softcover)
Accelerated Reader Book Level: 3.7
Accelerated Reader Points: 0.5


Lafcadio, The Lion Who Shot Back

     I have always found Shel Silverstein's books, poems and illustrations to not only be a constant source of unending humor, but uniquely insightful.  No matter how old you are, there is something to learn from each of his stories.  Valuable lessons that, quite simply, I continue to learn from this very day, having spent years reading them on my own; then to my son when he was little, and now to my students in my reading intervention class.
     Originally published back in 1963, Lafcadio, the Lion Who Shot Back, takes a look at big, nasty game hunters, and a lion who manages to stand up for himself.  As our tale begins, Lafcadio lives happily in the jungle along with his lion friends, enjoying all those typical things that lions like to do, "..jumping and playing in the grass and swimming in the river and eating rabbits..."  and having a great time!  One day, while taking an afternoon snooze with his fellow felines, all this bliss comes to a quick end with the sound of gunshots.  The noise jolts all of the lions from their slumber and they take off running---all except Lafcadio who likes the sound of the name of those whose arrival the gunshots announced.  Hunters.  Lafcadio comes across one of the hunters, and immediately surrenders, informing the hunter in the red woolen cap that he will be happy to, " ...be your rug and I will lie in front of your fireplace and I won't move a muscle and you can sit on me and toast all of the marshmallows you want.  I love marshmallows."  (Although, we soon learn that Lafcadio is once again in love with the name, but has yet to taste one!).  But, being a hunter, he ignores Lafcadio's pleas, and attempts to shoot him, but Lafcadio, his hunger overtaking him, swallows the hunter up, woolen cap and all.  But, the hunter's gun remains behind, and Lafcadio takes it home and learns to become a sharpshooter, and soon, becomes an overnight sensation.  Fame brings many fancy new things to Lafcadio's life, like suits and shirts with collars to wear in order to look presentable while shooting, and all the marshmallows a lion can devour. But soon, Lafcadio starts to realize that he doesn't fit in with this new world, and yet, at the same time, doesn't feel like he can go back to the life that he once had in the jungle.  In the end, Silverstein makes us contemplate the importance for one (quite similar to the moral of our previous tale, Dandelion) to learn to be comfortable in the skin they're in; to be true to oneself, instead of giving in to the pressure of feeling like you need to change in order to be what you think others expect and/or want you to be.
     Lafcadio, The Lion Who Shot Back, is a chapter book, which is quite different when compared with Silverstein's typical short stories and poetry books.  However, this tale is a good start for children who are just beginning to venture into reading short chapter books, like my students.  With Silverstein's simple, yet trademark black and white illustrations on every page, and the silly plot line, it's just the perfect read-aloud for a class, which I look forward to doing later on this week with my second graders.

Lafcadio, The Lion Who Shot Back
Written & Illustrated by Shel Silverstein
Publisher:  HarperCollins Publishers
Website:  www.harpercollinschildrens.com
For ages 4 to 8
Retails for $16.99 (Hardcover)
ISBN: 9780060256753
Accelerated Reader Book Level: 4.9
Accelerated Reader Points:  1.0