Jo Wright Livres

Children's illustrated story in rhyming verse. Brian is a nervous, jumpy lion who is embarrassed when smaller animals make him jump and decides to do something about it. A funny story, with lots of roaring and bold, vibrant illustrations throughout. Brian the Lion is the second title in the series, Cyril the Squirrel and Friends. Other books available include Cyril the Squirrel, Myrtle the Turtle and Lola Clare the Polar Bear. The books are set in varied contexts around the world. Suitable to be read aloud to toddlers and preschool children, but also for older children (up to age 8) as they are learning to read, this series of books deliberately includes a few longer or slightly less common words (like "plucky" and "glisten") in order to encourage early absorption of a wider English vocabulary, as this has been proved to benefit literacy and development later on. The rhyming character names also teach children about the idiosyncrasies of English pronunciation. Besides this, the books remain funny, happy animal stories for all children to enjoy.