Watch out for the lion!

PreS-Gr 2--Adorable and humorous, this fourth wall--breaking story along the lines of Jory John and Bob Shea's I Will Chomp You starts with an unseen narrator warning readers away from the book. The narrator thoughtfully provides a guide ("How to Spot A Lion" with snout, tail, fangs, ears, and claws all labeled). On the next spread, a "brushy, bristly tail" is visible, but a page turn reveals that the tail belongs to a giraffe. The pattern repeats until the narrator gives up, at which point, of course, a lion does emerge--a cute little lion cub. Illustrations are large, clear, and uncluttered, with bright backgrounds, clever camouflage, and funny animal expressions, from a smiling sloth to a grumpy walrus. The text is chock-full of lively alliteration, making it a pleasure to read aloud. VERDICT A sure winner for story times as well as one-on-one settings; children will enjoy being in on the joke on rereadings.--Jenny Arch

We're going on a lion hunt.... Lions are easily identified thanks to characteristics like their teeth, snout, and tail. But when an unseen narrator thinks they've spotted one of the fearsome creatures, each reveal actually presents an animal with a similar body part. That "brushy, bristly tail" is very similar to a giraffe's! Those "curvy claws" could be mistaken for a sloth's! And those "ferocious fangs" might actually belong in the mouth of a walrus. The story is amusing; it's reminiscent of Mônica Carnesi's recently published There's a Lion in the Forest! (2022) but without that picture book's masterfully enclosed message of ecological responsibility. Persnickety readers may quibble that outside of a zoo, the mistaken animals would be nowhere near each other, but the humor and the well-crafted page turns revealing each subsequent animal ensure that these objections will be forgiven. The digital illustrations are bold enough to be seen from the back of a classroom or story-hour space, and adept storytellers will be able to make a meal of the snappy text--this tale is well suited for both large group read-alouds and intimate lap reads. (This book was reviewed digitally.) We're not lyin'--it's a great story! (Picture book. 4-8) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.