Sometimes, the universe drops a little wink in your lap.
I had one of those moments this week when I read a Wall Street Journal review of a delightful new children’s book called Do You See the Tiger? by Philip Ardagh and illustrated by David Melling. In the story, a young girl named Penny spots a tiger hidden in plain sight during a routine subway ride in London—camouflaged as just another commuter in the crowd. Her father, of course, sees nothing.
And I couldn’t help but smile.
Because here at Paper Tiger, we’ve been exploring a similar idea: the fears we carry, the monsters we imagine, the tigers we think are chasing us. In our own children’s book Paper Tiger, young Ellenor also confronts her own imaginary tiger, this time in the chaotic wilds of New York City. With the help of her therapist—and a tiger made not of teeth and terror but of simple paper—she begins to tame those fears and reframe her thoughts.
Two different cities. Two different authors. Two very different styles of storytelling.
But the same heart.
Both Penny and Ellenor give children—and the adults reading alongside them—permission to trust their instincts, to notice what others miss, and to befriend what at first seems frightening. Both books explore that mysterious intersection between imagination and reality, where a tiger might not be a predator at all—but a guide, a signal, or a part of ourselves that simply needs to be understood.
That’s the serendipity of storytelling. Sometimes, a stranger’s book can feel like a quiet echo of your own heart. And instead of feeling discouraged—“Oh no, someone else wrote a tiger book!”—you feel validated. Encouraged. Connected. As if you’re part of a larger creative constellation you didn’t even know you belonged to.
So today, I’m raising a mug of tea (tiger-striped, of course) to all the artists chasing ideas that feel deeply personal—and finding out those ideas resonate far beyond their own pages.
🐯 You can grab Do You See the Tiger? anywhere books are sold.
📘 You can order Paper Tiger here: mybook.to/PaperTiger
📕 And Perfectly Imperfect here: https://papertiger.store/products/coming-soon-perfectly-imperfect
📗 Don’t forget Sanctuary, here: serendipity12th.com/sanctuary-by-cara-baker
If a tiger has ever chased you—real or imagined—we hope these stories help you turn around, look it in the eye, and realize maybe it was just made of paper all along.