The Lion and the Bird by Marianne Dubuc (Book Island)

We have been waiting with baited breath for this book to be available in the UK and thanks to Book Island, we need wait no longer and nor were we disappointed.

‘The Lion and the Bird‘ by the most brilliant Marianne Dubuc is everything we’d hoped it would be and then some. Having seen the book across social media and reading the reviews, we knew it would be one to covet.

Rarely does a book generate such emotion and for us, this book does it in a gentle yet powerful way, through an unfurling of beautiful spreads and minimal copy.

Such a tender and emotional story, set to the backdrop of the changing of the seasons, this story will not fail to move its reader.

When a lion befriends a bird with a broken wing, they form an unlikely and unfathomable bond.

The lion takes the bird into his care and nurtures him back to full health.

All through the winter they play together and share stories and moments in each other’s company.

Then Spring appears all to quickly and so do the birds’ flock. Will the bird remain with Lion or return to its family?

Dubuc‘s clever use of colour, shade and palette adds a very distinct feeling of calm to this very human story

Her sparse but poignant use of text is ever evident on the predominantly white spreads and the addition of blank white pages, as Winter ends and Spring awakens is clever way of punctuating each transitional phase.

We have no doubt that this book is set to become a timeless classic and one that will adorn shelves everywhere.