Love, Bonito sells children’s book authored by in-house marketer Vanessa Yeo Barger

Southeast Asian womenswear brand Love, Bonito, has released its first-ever children’s storybook authored by its own marketer vice president of the brand, Vanessa Yeo Barger. The book titled “Lili the Lioness & Friends” will be released through Love, Bonito’s social impact programme LBCreate.

Targetted at children aged three to seven years old, the book features six female animal characters, and follows the journey of Jungle School’s head girl, Lili the Lioness, who invents her own “power cheer” to motivate her friends in school but loses her voice as she is about to make a special announcement for the students. 

Through her ups and downs, readers will discover the power of finding strength in vulnerability as well as empowerment through community, teamwork and collaboration, all of which are representative of Love, Bonito’s culture and values. The book also features interactive elements like a scavenger hunt and instructions for readers to write their own “power cheer”.

The book will be made available from 16 September and comes in two formats. The physical version will be on sale via Love, Bonito’s websites, while an animated video book has also been created in partnership with animation studio Finding Pictures, to be carried on steaming service Vooks.

Author Yeo Barger said, “We want children and parents to fall in love with the story and the joy of reading together. While the book was written with children in mind, it’s also a story that will no doubt move readers of all ages, one we can often return to, to be reminded, comforted and encouraged by the reality that we’re not alone. And we don’t have to be alone. You can’t spell power without “we”, and together, we are stronger.”

She added that she was inspired to write the story after a visit to the zoo with her two daughters and saw both girls confusing a lioness as a tiger without stripes. This encouraged her to create an empowering narrative with inspiring female-first characters to celebrate the strength of women supporting women.

Bringing the story to life is Lee Jia Zhen, Love, Bonito’s graphic designer and illustrator, who envisioned a concept with vibrant colours and visual patterns. This allows for young readers to easily comprehend and immerse themselves in the story and also connect with the irresistible characters.

With the initiative, Love, Bonito is also looking to support the education of girls in historically low-income communities in Asia for a year. It has set a target goal of US$30,000 in proceeds. Rachel Lim, cofounder of Love, Bonito said LBCreate was formed last year to crystallise Love, Bonito’s contribution towards empowering women from the ground up.

"This year, we’re back with our first-ever children’s storybook, to showcase our brand’s commitment towards creating actionable steps for our community. We strongly believe that female empowerment begins with providing a solid foundation for young girls and we’re proud to partner with like-minded organisations to bring our vision to life," said Lim. 

Voicing the characters in the animated video book are Singaporean actor, presenter, voice-over artist Naomi Yeo (The Narrator, Lili the lioness, Sophia the sloth, Thea the toucan) and Mediacorp 987 DJ Natasha (Cora the crocodile, Fatima the frog, Mary the mouse).

Customers can also look forward to themed in-store curated corners across Love, Bonito’s five markets, namely Cambodia, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore. 

Love, Bonito launched LBCreate in 2021 through a partnership with Mattel, with the “Dream it, do it!” Barbie collection. This collection strived to inspire young girls and women to pursue their limitless potential.

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