THE SECRET LION

“The Secret Lion,” by Alberto Alvaro Rios is a story about growing up and losing the innocence and wonder of being a child.
In the first paragraph of Alberto Alvaro’s story “The Secret Lion,” a twelve-year old boy’s point of view on growing up is introduced when he explains the difference between how kids and adults perceive a magic trick. As the narrator tells us, when the magician pulls a table cloth out from under a pile of dishes, children are awed and amazed at how the stuff on the table stays the same, while adults focus on the table cloth itself and they know that the trick will work if correct technique is implemented. Adults look for the logic as opposed to children who believe the magic. When we grow up, we suffer the loss of innocence and sense of wonder for experience and knowledge. This is a central element in “The Secret Lion.”
The story’s setting takes place in the boys’ first year of junior high school. Life changed for th...