The Tigon and The Liger

I think I have mentioned before that Miss E loves all things Lion and The Tigon and the Liger by Keilly Swift and Cosei Kawa is a welcome addition to our bookshelf.

The story is a lovely gentle rhyming story that follows Tyler the tigon who is different to his tiger friends as his dad is a tiger and his mum is a lion. He is excluded from their tiger play and he sets off, dejected and sad. He soon meets a Lyla the liger who finds himself in the same position (he dad is a lion and her mum is a tiger). Like Tyler, Lyla is sad and dejected having been snubbed by her lion friends. The two quickly form a friendship and soon realise that being different isn’t a flaw.

Their tiger and lion friends soon see that the tigon and liger are having lots of fun and that it is OK to be different. The tigon and liger are soon comfortable in their own skin.

This is an important book with an important message. Everyone, at some point, finds themselves on the outside in some way, be it in looks, values, approaches to things etc. It is hard to prepare children for a world where they might not fit in in every situation, and I want Mr D, Miss E and Mr H to be comfortable in their own skin and had the courage of their convictions and stay true to themselves. The Tigon and the Liger is a really good introduction to this idea as well as helping them to see that others who are different are not to be feared or worried about and that, really, underneath appearances we are all pretty much the same.