Sun Flower Lion by Kevin Henkes (review)

Henkes, Kevin Sun Flower Lion; written and illus. by Kevin Henkes. Greenwillow, 2020 [40p] Trade ed. ISBN 9780062866103 $18.99 Library ed. ISBN 9780062866110 $19.89 E-book ed. ISBN 9780063017375 $12.99 Reviewed from digital galleys R 3-5 yrs

In six bijou chapters, the sun shines on a flower, which is smelled by a lion. The lion then falls asleep in the sun and dreams of eating cookies; waking to find he's hungry, he runs home, eats supper, and falls asleep amid his loving lion family. As demonstrated in A Parade of Elephants (BCCB 9/18), Henkes is a master in rendering the simple fascinating, and here his pared-down text dances with beginning-reader conventions in its short lines, declarative sentences, and occasional direct address ("Can you see him? No, you can't") in a story that's warm and at times gently humorous. The art streamlines things further but then turns that simplicity into a game: two color art, in shades of black and yellow, centers on the ruffled yellow circle that is variously sun, flower, and face of lion (though it's a stretch to natural history to give a young lion cub a mane). Confidently minimal draftsmanship makes the lion a cozy, toylike figure (with an adorable yellow puff at the end of his tail) while still keeping the design carefully rhythmic. Though novice readers may enjoy the wee saga, it's especially perfect as a title to delight pre-readers and offer satisfying read-along opportunities as they pick up on the story and flex their reading muscles.