Leo and the Lesser Lion Book

Personal Reflection:
This book was really amazing. I loved it! This book serves as a perfect outlet in trying to figure out your purpose in life and how to move through hardships. Young Bayliss deals with the loss of her brother after trying to save him and failing. Bayliss lives on trying to overcome a feeling that can be very easily understood and a feeling that many readers will become captivated by. The language and tone of this book is wonderful; personal and journal-like since it is written in a first person point of view. Like many other books I've read, I really became one with the character; breathing and feeling her pain with her. Trying to bring all her problems under control, Bayliss shows how life can still have great meaning, even though life can throw great and terrible things at you. This book can very much hook children back into reading if they lost the momentum of reading!

Purpose:
Read-aloud or read-to-self for 3-5th graders. If this book is to be read by 3rd graders, then it's better to do so reading it out loud. Children tend to be overwhelmed by lengths of book, and this is by no means a typical length for your 3rd grade students, but the language used is adequate for 3rd graders as are the events that happen in it. Children in 4th grade and even 5th grade would be able to read on their own and comprehend just fine. I think this book would be perfect to include in school because it can help students in coping with many different problems and how to get through tough times. Children go through divorces, deaths, self-hate, and many other things, and this book is a good outlet and reminder that children are not alone in their problems. There are other characters, so to speak, who understand how they feel and that's important for students to know.

Other Comments:
Read in conjunction with "Kira Kira" by Cynthia Kadohata. Students could discuss the similarities and differences in the siblings' relationships and the books in general.