Some of the world’s best known carnivores—the lion, great white shark and wolf—are thought of to be fearsome and frightening. Yet when the trio get together in a new picture book, Carnivores, they can’t wait to share about how their feelings get hurt when they are labeled as meanies.

What’s a good meat-eater to do? These three decide to go on a vegetarian diet, but find they don’t have the stomach for it. Ultimately they go back to being their true selves, even if it does mean they eat cute animals.

Written by Aaron Reynold and illustrated by Dan Santat, Carnivores is a light-hearted look at what it means to be at the top of the food chain. The play starts on the cover, where the carnivores are covered in plastic as though they are packaged at a grocery store meat counter. The fun continues from there with the wild animals working to get in touch with their feelings and be more likeable.

The topic is a bit macabre, with the lion eating antelope, the shark dispatching dolphins and the wolf consuming bunnies, but it should help young children understand the role of carnivores in nature while entertaining them with humorous illustrations. It’s lots of fun in a dark sort of way.

The publisher provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.