The Lion and the Bird

The Lion and the Bird by Marianne Dubuc is a beautiful story of an unlikely friendship. In autumn, as he’s working in his garden, a lion finds an injured bird. After bandaging the bird’s broken wing, the lion invites the recovering bird to stay with him, since he can’t fly south with the other birds. Beautiful illustrations, accompanied by very few words, depict the blossoming friendship and show the friends making the most out of a snowy winter. It’s cold, “but winter doesn’t feel all that cold with a friend.”

The arrival of spring brings the return of the other birds, and the lion knows that he must say goodbye to his friend. He watches longingly as the bird flies away. “And so it goes. Sometimes life is like that.” Through spring and summer, the lion goes about his daily life looking a little sadder than before, clearly missing his companion. Finally, as fall reappears, the lion wishes for the return of his friend. Sure enough, the bird comes back, and instead of flying south, he stays to keep the lion company. “Together, we’ll stay warm again this winter.”

The lovely illustrations really evoke a lot of emotion. In fact, this story of friendship is so sweet that it brought several of my coworkers to tears. So, if you’re a bit of a sap yourself, you may want to read it with a box of tissues nearby…