''The Happy Lion'' () is a 1954 children's picture book by

Louise Fatio Louise Emma Fatio Duvoisin (August 18, 1904 – July 26, 1993) was a Swiss-born American writer of children's books. Many were created in collaboration with her husband Roger Duvoisin, a Swiss-born illustrator, and she is known best for their p ...

and illustrated by

Roger Duvoisin Roger Antoine Duvoisin (August 28, 1900 – June 30, 1980) was a Swiss-born American writer and illustrator best known for children's picture books. He won the 1948 Caldecott Medal for picture books and in 1968 he was a highly commended runner-u ...

. The tale follows a Happy Lion in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

who, after escaping the small zoo where he lives, is surprised that people, who loved visiting him there, are now scared of him. The book was so popular that it spawned several sequels and an 8-minute short film by

Weston Woods Studios Weston Woods Studios (or simply Weston Woods) is a production company that makes audio and short films based on well-known books for children. It was founded in 1953 by Morton Schindel in Weston, Connecticut, and named after the wooded area near h ...

. It won the

Deutscher Jugendliteraturpreis The (German Youth Literature Award) is an annual award established in 1956 by the Federal Ministry of Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth to recognise outstanding works of children's and young adult literature. It is Germany's only ...

in 1956.

Books in the series

# ''The Happy Lion'' (1954) - "Grand sourire." # ''The Happy Lion in Africa'' (1955) # ''The Happy Lion Roars'' (1957) # ''The Three Happy Lions'' (1959) - "... another delightfully Gallic adventure with a tiny French vocabulary and Roger Duvoisin's uniquely ingratiating color illustrations." # ''The Happy Lion's Quest'' (1961) - "The improbable situation of a lion in school and the sight of two humans and one friendly animal all stuffed in a little French car on the way back to the zoo will delight early graders especially as envisioned by Roger Duvoisin's winsome illustrations in color and black and white." # ''The Happy Lion and the Bear'' (1964) # ''The Happy Lion's Holiday'', aka ''The Happy Lion's Vacation'' (1967) - "The single incongruity of the series--a gentle, lovable lion--is pretty much played out by this time, and two-thirds of the latest adventure is as aimless as the drifting balloon. We found little distinction and some confusion in the drawings--maybe it's time for a vacation." # ''The Happy Lion's Treasure'' (1970) # ''The Happy Lion's Rabbits'' (1974) # ''The Happy Lioness'' (1980)

References

1954 children's books American picture books Children's fiction books Comedy books Series of children's books Children's books adapted into films English-language books Children's books about lions Talking animals in fiction Children's books set in France Book series introduced in 1954 {{child-picture-book-stub