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Shola and the Lions
By Bernardo Atxaga, Mikel Valverde, Margaret Jull Costa Steerforth Press
Copyright © 2013 Bernardo Atxaga
All rights reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-78269-064-1
CHAPTER 1
One day, Señor Grogó had a visit from a friend who had been travelling round Africa and was longing to tell Grogó about every thing he had seen there. Grogó's friend talked a lot; he talked about the Sudan, about Zimbabwe, Kenya and Nigeria, he talked about the Masai, the Batusi and the Zulus, and also about the chief of an Ethiopian tribe, whose name was Abebe-Aba-ba-Abebe. And after talking about all these things, he talked about the jungle and about lions.
"The lion is a magnificent beast," said the friend. "He's strong, powerful and noble. He's the King of the Jungle. There's no animal he can't vanquish. He can strike a hunter dead with the last beat of his heart."
Shola, who had been dozing in the armchair, pricked up her ears. What sort of beast was this lion, so like herself in so many ways? She too was strong, powerful and noble. Although she had never actually fought with anyone or seen a hunter, she was sure that they would all be afraid of her; she was sure that all animals and all hunters were aware — painfully aware — that she could strike them dead with the last beat of her heart.
"So ..." Shola wagged her tail doubtfully, "if I'm a lion, why does Grogó insist on calling me a mere mutt?"
Shola was in the grip of these terrible doubts when the friend brought his visit to an end.
"I'll take you home," said Señor Grogó. "I fancy a walk. Are you coming, Shola?"
"Not me," said she. "I don't feel like going out. I've got a lot of things to think about."
When she was alone, Shola noticed that Grogó's friend had left a book on the chair, and she craned her neck to read the title. Her heart turned over, and that was because of what was on the cover, and what was on the cover was this: The Lion, King of the Jungle.
This was just what she needed if she was to find out whether she really was just a mutt or whether she was, in fact, a lion. Shola opened the book at the first page and started reading, and what she read was this:
The lion is a strong, powerful and noble animal, feared by all. He is the undisputed king of the jungle.
"So everyone agrees, then," thought Shola, remembering what Grogó's friend had said. "I must study this book properly."
She picked up the book and carried it off to her hidey hole, the place where she kept her bones and her toys. Then she returned and lay down on the armchair, where she remained until Señor Grogó came back.
"Shola," said Grogó as soon as he came in the room, "have you seen a book lying around? My friend left it in here somewhere."
"I haven't seen anything," she said.
"Are you sure?" insisted Grogó, who knew what a liar she was.
"Powerful, noble creatures like myself never lie," declared Shola, who was already feeling a little like a lioness.
From that day on, Shola showed very little interest in going for walks. She said she no longer wanted to do what she had always done, and that she preferred staying at home. Señor Grogó shrugged his shoulders and went out by himself.
"What are you playing at, Shola?" he asked after she had gone three whole days without once wanting to go out for a walk.
"I'm not playing at anything," replied Shola.
(Continues...)
Excerpted from Shola and the Lions by Bernardo Atxaga, Mikel Valverde, Margaret Jull Costa. Copyright © 2013 Bernardo Atxaga. Excerpted by permission of Steerforth Press.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
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