The Lion Inside

Product Information

She runs a really long way every day and has done loads of ultra-marathons all over the world, the most recent of which include the Atlantic Coast Challenge (3 marathons in 3 days) and the Midnight Sun marathon in the Arctic Circle. Rachel Bright is a wordsmith, illustrator and professional thinker of happy thoughts. She has written several books for children, including Love Monster, The Lion Inside and The Koala Who Could– winner of the Evening Standard Oscar’s Book Prize and the Sainsbury’s Book Award. Her books have sold over 300,000 copies in the UK alone and been translated into over 30 languages. She is also the creator of award-winning stationery and homewares range, The Brightside. Rachel lives on a farm near the seaside, with her partner and their two young daughters.

The story tells us that ‘we all have a mouse AND a lion inside’. Can you think of any stories that have a moral? What do they try to teach us? Fed up of being ignored by the other animals, Mouse wishes he could roar like Lion. But, as he discovers, even the biggest, bossiest people are scared sometimes … and even the smallest creatures can have the heart of a lion! The story is told in delightful rhyming prose and as expected, the artwork by Jim Field is delightful and full of warmth and charm.

Teaching Ideas and Resources:

Mouse is desperate to be like lion but finds out that he doesn’t need to be like lion at all, he just needs to find his own voice and have self-belief. There are delightful messages on finding courage, being brave, taking risks (mouse faces the prospect of being lion’s dinner) and chasing your dreams. And also that friendship comes in the most unlikeliest forms. The mouse realises that “if you want things to change, you first have to change YOU.” What does this mean? A modern classic, The Lion Inside has sold over 200,000 copies in the UK alone and been translated into over 30 languages worldwide. Create your own illustrations of a lion and a mouse. Use our lion photos (see below) for inspiration. A Rose Original Production with Nicoll Entertainment, Curve, MAST Mayflower Studios, and Unicorn Theatre

Her work aims to capture a free way of thinking - one which makes you feel anything is possible, a feeling all too easily lost with the end of childhood. When we’re all grown-up, sometimes we just need a little nudge to remember it’s been there all along. She explores the lovliness of words and the magic of pictures, revelling in a world of jam-eating miniature bears and other made-up animals. Her written work includes children’s stories and poems, clever advertising copy and lots of other stuff besides. Her illustrative work is a smorgasboard of giant, hand-printed poems, mind-bogglingly detailed gouache illustrations and a cacophony of quirky prints and etchings. She once won a week-long date in Tahiti, with ‘Man of the Millenium’ featured in Marie Claire magazine (and then spent a long time living it down).She collects alphabets and hats and has a Nissan Figaro car which everyone says looks like a matchbox toy. Fed up of being ignored and forgotten by the other animals, Mouse wishes he could roar like Lion. But, as he discovers, even the biggest, bossiest people are scared sometimes ... and even the smallest creatures can have the heart of a lion! Look at the facial expression of the animals in each illustration. Can you take photographs of yourself (or a friend) showing different facial expressions and use these as the starting point for your own illustrations? Rachel is a writer of words, drawer of pictures and champion of silver linings. She exhibits widely, writes tirelessly and frequently creates slightly unhinged characters.