The Butterfly Lion

It is for children so therefore it is written in a very basic style...but the depth of story for such a short piece, 125 pages...was fantastic. Of course it was also a little far-fetched...but the story was simply delightful. reminded me of the book my children had about a little elephant that they read over and over. The one thing that bothered me was HOW the little cub came to be with the boy...but at least they didn't go out and capture it and they did show some responsibility. Once I got by that part I caught myself smiling throughout the hour it took me to complete it.

Brilliant short read that left me feeling pleased that I had read it, but really perplexed as to the old lady at the end, was she a ghost? If so how did she drive the young boy back to the school and who is the young boy? Is he the reincarnation of Bertie or is this Bertie's story told through Bertie’s ghost. Once again Morpurgo has written a story that has various storylines that do not overpower each other, but run alongside and compliment to build a gratifying read. The story of Albert (Bertie), a young boy growing up in Africa, and his lifelong friendship with a white lion. Bertie rescues an orphaned white lion cub from the African veldt. They are inseparable until Bertie is sent to boarding school far away in England and the lion show more is sold to a circus. His promise to never forget the lion is poignant throughout the story.
"All my life I'll think of you, I promise I will. I won't ever forget you."
Bertie swears that one day they will see one another again. Bertie runs away from boarding school, but is encouraged to return by a young girl he met while on the run. While in boarding school, his mother dies and his father remarries and sells off the family compound. Feeling despondent, he realises that his family home is no longer there to return after his schooling. Bertie goes off to enlist in the war and is severely injured, however the young girl he befriended when he ran away so long ago at school is a nurse and helps Bertie on the road to recovery. While in France recuperating Bertie rediscovers the white lion he gave away to a circus owner, so long ago as a young boy. They are reunited and return to England to live out their days, but it is the butterfly lion which ensures that their friendship will never be forgotten. show less

This book tells the story of Bertie, a lonely little boy in the South African veld who one day adopts an orphaned white lion cub who then becomes his best friend. When he's due to go to boarding school in England, his father sells the cub to a French circus owner, but not before Bertie promises to find him again. Years later and now a soldier in France during WWI, he succeeds in tracking him down and bringing him back to England. When the lion dies, Bertie and his wife create the Butterfly Lion of the title to always remember him by.

A short novel for confident readers (or for sharing) in fairly large print with charming illustrations, this is written in clear prose that is very engaging and manages to subtly convey to the reader the show more issues of love and belonging, loyalty and friendship, and even the terrors and hardships during the First World War. This would have been plenty to keep anyone happy, so the final twist of turning the book into a ghost story was, in my opinion, unnecessary and somewhat disappointing.

A lovely introduction to the works of Michael Morpurgo that whets the appetite for more. show less

The Butterfly Lion: My 7 year old daughter was given this book to read for her homework and it has had the whole family totally enthralled. It makes a real change to read a believable story and not one about fairies and pixies! The way the story is told is amazing and teaches about different narratives, the past and there is a great twist in the tale at the end. It also brought up the First World War and I was able to relate my Grandfathers' experiences to her which were very similar to those of Bertie.A truly magnificent book and thoroughly recommended to both adults and children. It had us all weeping in places and cheering in others.

I just finished reading this with my daughter tonight (she's six) and it was great. Normally we read two chapters of a book every night but she has been begging me for more of this since we started it two nights ago; we read over half the book tonight. It also started great conversations about war and Africa and boarding schools (amongst other things). It's very touching and of course, being by Morpurgo, very well written.

The children in my class love this, and it is another example of Michael Morpurgo's ability to weave a tale that will captivate children, deal with issues in a safe environment and get them hooked on reading. It was one of my reluctant readers who recommended this to me and I can see why he enjoyed it. The tale of Bertie and his white lion, which he rescued as a cub and who was devoted from then on. A sad but heart-warming tale. Children will love it.

A touching story that I read in one sitting. It's a story within a story as a young boy runs away from school and ends up sat in an old lady's kitchen listening to her tale about the white lion.