Christian the Lion

by Anthony Bourke, John Rendall

Overview

As Ace and John, two friends, are searching for holiday gifts in London, they come across a lion cub for sale in Harrods, the famous department store! Unable to bear the thought of leaving the cub, Ace and John take him home and name him Christian. After a year of fun and mischief Christian has grown up, and Ace and John realize that their pet needs to be among other lions and deserves to live free, in his natural environment. Luckily, friends help introduce Christian to the African wild.

Christian the Lion tells the riveting true story of one animal’s ability to adapt to life in the wild, and captures the unexpectedly enduring connection between man and animal.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780375895623
Publisher:	Random House Children's Books
Publication date:	03/10/2009
Sold by:	Random House
Format:	eBook
Pages:	144
File size:	6 MB
Age Range:	7 - 10 Years

About the Author

Anthony “Ace” Bourke was born in Sydney in 1946. He has become one of Australia’s leading art curators, a pioneer in the field of Aboriginal art, and a colonial art specialist, staging numerous critically acclaimed exhibitions. Ace hopes to immerse himself again in wildlife and conservation projects, to help address the world’s urgent environmental issues. He lives in Sydney with his two cats.

John Rendall is a sixth-generation Australian and divides his time between London and Sydney. He continues his commitment to the George Adamson Wildlife Preservation Trust and is a member of the Royal Geographical Society in London. He has been involved in travel-focused public relations, concentrating on conservation projects, lodges, and reserves in Africa. John’s three children share his passion for wildlife and conservation.

Editorial Reviews

This young reader's adaptation of Bourke and Rendall's A Lion Called Christian(Doubleday, 1971) concisely relays the story of an unorthodox pet: a lion cub the authors find in a cramped cage in a London store. As the friendly lion grows, his owners reluctantly acknowledge that Christian belongs in his natural habitat, and they arrange to have him released into the Kenya wilderness, thanks to several remarkable coincidences. Some readers will be familiar with the story's affecting conclusion-Christian joyfully greets his former owners when they visit Kenya a year after his release-since it is depicted in a popular YouTube video. Ably and excitedly streamlined for the audience ("Christian pulled on his lead like an excited puppy.... he wanted to get outside!"), the narrative includes numerous light, endearing anecdotes about Christian's accomplishments and missteps, both as a pet and while adapting to his new life in Africa. Enhancing the volume's kid appeal are a 16-page color photo insert of the lion and the authors, plus facts about African lions and other species. Ages 8-10. (Mar.)

Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Publishers Weekly

Gr 3-6–Christian the lion lived in London with two antique dealers until they decided he needed to be trained to survive in the wild and live out a happier life in Africa. Bourke and Rendall tell this strange tale of buying the lion cub in a department store, giving him the run of their home and store, and introducing him to their life in the thick of the city. They describe where he liked to sit, what he liked to do, and how he reacted to new situations. All of the circumstances pile up on one another, making for a slow-paced narrative. The story is based on the authors’ experiences, but, according to the CIP, “the names of people, places, dates, the sequences and details of events, and the actions and conversations of real-life figures have been changed.” So it is difficult to know what is true and what is not other than their love for this gentle lion and their understandable unhappiness about their preparations for his eventual departure. Some of the photos seen on YouTube are grouped with other black-and-white and color shots in the center of the book. Back matter contains tidbits about Christian, lions in general, and various famous animals. This is not an essential purchase.–Nancy Call, Santa Cruz Public Libraries, Aptos, CA

School Library Journal