He has written more than 150 novels and won many prizes, including the Smarties Prize, the Whitbread Award and the Blue Peter Book Award, while several of his books have been adapted for stage and screen, including the global theatrical phenomenon War Horse. Years later and now a soldier in France during WWI, he sees a poster for a circus with a white lion on it and he succeeds in tracking him down. Many years later, Bertie becomes a soldier and when he goes to France, he sees the white lion again. They have a wonderful companionship but things take a turn for the worst when Bertie is sent to boarding school in England and his father sells the cub to a French circus owner.

They are inseparable until Bertie is sent to boarding school far away in England and the lion is sold to a circus.I feel that this book is very effective in introducing the serious emotions that children may experience.

However, he is carefully ambiguous enough to allow a wide verity of readers to identify directly with him. As a history degree graduate, I love any book that attempts to incite an interest in history from children and I think this book does this perfectly. Many years later, Bertie was fighting for England in the Great War in France, when he saw a poster with a white lion on it advertising a nearby circus. I especially like the relationship between the old lady and the boy which is both polite and respectful - very refreshing in todays age.It is a small book and so would be great for children who sometimes can feel intimidated by the amount of pages in a book.