Renato and the Lion

PreS-Gr 2—Renato's father repairs sculptures during World War II, so it is not surprising that the boy has a favorite piece in his Florentine neighborhood: the Medici lion in the Piazza della Signoria. When the two pass the exterior version of Michelangelo's David—and the child sees an enormous brick dome instead—his father points to soldiers, explaining the need for protective measures. Concerned about his stone lion, Renato hastens to build his own brick enclosure. He falls asleep on the beast, dreaming that they explore the city together. Eventually, Renato and his family board a boat for America and a new life. As a grandfather, Renato is prompted to relay his story to his granddaughter while passing the New York Public Library lions; the two visit Florence to view his old friend. DiLorenzo clearly has a passion for Italy. Acknowledgements and an author's note explain the extent of her vetting and research. The writing is peppered with awkwardness and repetition: "He loved the people there. And the food there. But he especially loved the art there." Many of the soft-focus watercolors are lovely—the ride across the Ponte Vecchio and various perspectives of the Duomo—but some of the lion's expressions and postures are less successful. Driven by the notion of safeguarding art during military conflict, this debut portrays a wartime reality that is not commonly addressed.