WILD, Margaret (text) Ritva Voutila (illus.) The Stone Lion Little Hare, 2014 unpaged $24.95 ISBN 9781921894855 SCIS 1657423
If you have ever been to London, you might remember the stone lion outside the British Museum. Margaret Wild, in this whimsical story, sets him outside the library instead. Here the lion tells the gargoyle that he would love to be alive and the gargoyle says that sometimes a great and generous heart will allow that. The lion is rewarded by rescuing two homeless children from the bleak winter cold.
The story has something of the tone of Han Christian Andersen or even Oscar Wilde about it and reaches deep into the emotions of the reader. The beautiful colour spreads in soft dreamy pastels add to the miracle found in the story with both words and illustrations combining to make this production a ‘must have’ addition for any junior collection.
reviewed by John Cohen
