Timmy loves to dress up in sparkly costumes and perform—in their room. They feel far too shy to ever fulfill their dream of taking the stage to share their stories. Every time they try to talk with someone new, a giant lion appears to “ROAR their confidence away.” Author and illustrator Harry Woodgate depicts this with images of an actual lion following Timmy around—a lion whose expressions seem to reflect Timmy’s emotions, and who really looks like a kindly sort of beast.
One day, however, Timmy’s classmate Nia admits to them that she is shy, too. She wants to make her own costume for the school play, but is too afraid to show anyone her design. Timmy finds the courage to tell her about the lion, and Nia suggests that if they help her to make her costume, she’ll help them rehearse so they can perform in the play.
Indeed, this seems to help—and Timmy and Nia also find other ways to work on their shyness, with tips from family and teachers. On the day of the performance, though, the lion comes back. Timmy is upset, until Nia suggests that maybe the lion is scared, too. Timmy realizes that the lion is actually a friend (albeit an imaginary one) with whom they can face their fears. Together, they find the courage to put on a show!
The lesson here is a gentle but important one. Woodgate’s words are lovely and occasionally lyrical, but it is their illustrations that make the book really shine. Colorful and full of movement, they also deftly capture the characters’ emotions and the (mostly) quiet and occasionally amusing presence of the lion. (When Timmy and Nia are working on their costumes, for example, the lion shows its pussycat side by playing with a ball of yarn.) Timmy is White and Nia Black.
Timmy’s nonbinary identity is not addressed directly, except that a picture of them in the end papers is labeled, “My pronouns are they/them.” Other quiet queer touches in the book include colors of several LGBTQ flags in streamers above the classroom and stage. And when Nia mentions that she likes macaws, Timmy reflects that their colors remind them of drag queens.
The book will resonate with many nonbinary or otherwise queer children. The fact that the queerness is incidental, however, and not the focus of the story, may also give the book broader appeal to anyone with shyness, anxiety, or stage fright. A warm and welcome addition to any home, library, or classroom.
