ROAR!

When the sun goes down on the savanna, the lion cub wants to play. Why doesn't anybody else?

Mama lion is stretched out on a tree branch, as lifeless as a rug. Her cub’s scratches and roars can't wake her. A couple of male lions stay stubbornly asleep as well. Time to roam. When the cub roars at the hippo, it burps in response. But a second, bigger roar sends the hippo and its whole family fleeing. The cub next tries a herd of giraffes, all erect but sleeping, their necks poking up through the leaves of a broad tree. When the cub roars, they also flee, in a flurry of "Eeek!"s (in myriad typefaces). The disappointed cub lies down on the ground, tail unthinkingly drooped down a hole that happens to be home to a family of rabbits. To one restless gray rabbit, the tail looks just like a carrot: “CHOMP!” Understandably, the cub lets out an enormous "ROAR!" followed by an even bigger "MORE!!" from the delighted rabbit. And the two new friends romp for hours...and pages. Bayless tells her story in the pictures, mostly double-page spreads with a few graphic-style panels; the only text—mostly “roar”s and “more”s—appears in sound bubbles. Her digitally colored pencil illustrations have an appealing crispness; the slightly stylized figures stand out evocatively against their deep blue, nocturnal backgrounds.

A fresh and funny friendship tale.