One of the most menacing Disney villains is Shere Khan, the slick, sophisticated tiger who has it in for Mowgli in The Jungle Book.
Given his terrifying experience with that dangerous jungle cat, one
might presume that Mowgli would be scared off tigers for life. However,
in A Friend for Life, the sixth book in Disney’s Storytime
Treasures Library, Mowgli’s kindness overcomes his fear when he
encounters an injured tigress and her three cubs.
This story,
written by Lisa Ann Marsoli and illustrated by Peter Emslie and David
Scott Smith, takes place a mere month after Mowgli’s return to the
Man-village at the edge of the jungle. He enjoys his life there and
loves regaling the other children with tales of his unconventional
upbringing, but he misses his former home. Hence, after clearing it with
the village chief, Mowgli sets out to pay his old friends a visit. What
he doesn’t expect is that he will make a new friend in the process.
Mowgli
must first win over Sheba, the distrustful tigress who was injured in a
fall while hunting. Her experience with people causes her to take a dim
view of them, but the boy’s gentleness and concern gradually wear her
down. However, if he is going to help her, he’s going to need the help
of jovial bear Baloo and cautious panther Bagheera. Will they be able to
put aside their traumatic experiences with Shere Khan, or is Sheba just
too inherently dangerous?
This is a nice story somewhat in the vein of David Kirk’s Miss Spider’s Tea Party.
Mowgli and Sheba have compelling reasons not to trust each other, but
this is a story that encourages us to look at everyone individually
instead of judging them based upon the group to which they belong. It’s a
tale about breaking down prejudices and building up friendships. The
narration and dialogue are nothing fancy but are well done, particularly
the brief banter of Baloo and Bagheera. I also like the eight-line
verse after the story that sums up its moral, concluding with this
compelling thought: “Like many so-called enemies, they shared more than
they knew.”
The illustrations are full of bright colors, with
the blazing orange of the tigers’ fur particularly standing out. The
characters are all recognizably the ones from the movie, and while the
backgrounds are a bit flatter than in the film, they are still done
well. Those who have seen the movie should have little trouble immersing
themselves in this world once again, and that’s a good thing because in
this book, the jungle is a very friendly place to be.
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