A few days ago, a co-worker handed this book over, asking if I ever read it. It's pretty dark, he said. "I don't know how this is in [the easy] section." I grabbed it out of his hand and vanished to my cart. A quick read, obviously. In the end, however, I'm still confused. How can we shelve this in the easy section?
Reading levels found in the easy section range from beginner to third grade, so it's not too surprising that this ended up on those shelves. However, our fiction section ranges from third and up. Things that are a little more "mature" are usually shelved there when it comes to third grade books. Why not The Good Lion? Autobiographical, Beryl Markham talks about an incident in her childhood when she was attacked by a seemingly tamed lion. Tragic? Yes. Dark? Most definitely.
The English major in me wants to over-analyze the deeper meaning. That maybe we're all good lions on the inside and our primal tendencies lie in wait. Waiting for that moment when we can let loose and allow them to spring forward. Maybe we're all just dying inside our cages.
The Good Lion can be purchased used at Better World Books. Until next time, keep on huntin'.
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