Daniele Kasper's Reviews > The Lion in Your Heart

Lion In Your Heart is a delightful tale about facing our fears. An inspiring and empowering story for young readers, it delves into the challenges we face when we are afraid and how we can conquer them, with a little help.

The help comes from a lion, bold and brave, who just so happens to live inside each and every one of us. This lion is in our heart. The lion is friendly and dependable and always there to protect us, as the author states. We may not be able to see it, but we can feel it inside ourselves.

Little Dennis has to find the lion in his own heart when he moves to a new house with his parents. Nothing is the same and that big change causes anxiety for Dennis. His room is different and his imagination runs wild, bringing his fears to life. His mother comes into his room and tells him the tale of his brave lion. When we are afraid, we can wake the lion and he will make our fear disappear. Dennis soon learns that even his mother has a lion in her heart that helps her face her fears.

This tale is a treat for adults to share with children. Fears and anxieties can cause emotional distress in little minds, but learning to awaken their own lion can help them to feel strong and confident even in the face of something scary, like show and tell, or spiders. This would be an amazing addition for classroom libraries, counselling offices and more. The cartoon-style illustrations were bright and bold, that will capture the attention of children. Bold fonts and simple prose will also make this the perfect book for an emerging reader to tackle on their own.

Incorporating social and emotional education into children's picture books is a tried and true way to teach an important life skill in a way that is fun. Everyone has fears, even adults. A valuable lesson for everyone to learn and remember. I absolutely recommend sharing this book with all the children in your life.