SECRET LIFE OF A TIGER

After admitting to readers that he recently bit, then swallowed whole, an apparently human explorer, a tiger insists that he’s really a great guy.

The tiger is reminiscent of Hanna-Barbera’s funny, anthropomorphic felines. At the beginning, a double-page spread of lush, colorful jungle flora—and a few small fauna—backgrounds the tiger, whose relaxed form is draped over a tree limb as he dozes. The text, and bold, white lettering, addresses readers: “Hey! Look who we’ve spotted. He’s big and stripy, with a mouth full of sharp, white teeth. Do you know who he is?” After affirming readers’ indisputable guess, the text continues, mentioning that the tiger is still asleep but will soon awaken. After this, most of the text is Tiger’s monologue to the readers. The important exception is a double-page series of vignettes that posit readers’ assertions about real tiger behavior (“He’ll sneak up on you!”). The tiger tries to dispute these, until he admits to the devoured-explorer accusation. His ridiculous insistence that he eats his prey “with love” sets up the next pages, in which hilarious artwork shows him, among other things, preparing fruit salad for a baby elephant, styling hair for baboons, and designing a Coliseum-like anthill for some local pismires.

Most children will recognize the tiger as an unreliable narrator and enjoy the silliness of his assertions.