Son Of Lion Hear Me Roar
A memoir of identity, adoption, belonging, resilience, and the search for home.
About My Book
Son of Lion – Hear Me Roar is a completed memoir following the life of Léon Shelton from adoption in Brisbane through a childhood marked by family instability, relocation, loss, and the search for identity.
Spanning decades and several Australian states, the story explores adoption, mental illness, family breakdown, queer identity, addiction, resilience, and the long journey towards self-acceptance. Through both hardship and humour, it examines what it means to build a life when certainty, belonging, and security are never guaranteed.
At its heart, Son of Lion – Hear Me Roar is a story about survival, reinvention, and discovering that family is not always defined by blood. It is a memoir about finding strength in places where none seems possible and learning to become the person you needed when you were young.
Themes Explored
Adoption & Identity
Mental Health & Survival
Resilience & Reinvention
Forgiveness & Healing
Family & Belonging
Childhood Adversity & Abuse
Chosen Family
Breaking Cycles
Self-discovery
Self-medicating
Rewriting the Future
Acceptance
Why I Wrote Son of Lion – Hear Me Roar
I wrote this memoir to understand my own story and to give voice to experiences that are often overlooked or misunderstood.
For many years I carried questions about identity, family, adoption, belonging, and what it means to rebuild a life after difficult beginnings. This book became an attempt to answer those questions honestly.
While the events are personal, the themes are universal. Most people know what it feels like to search for acceptance, struggle with the past, or try to create a better future than the one they inherited.
Manuscript Status
Completed Manuscript