The Woman Behind the Magic: How Lillian B. Disney Shaped the Disney Legacy

71hM-1QxswL
Co-Authors / Illustrators
Age Range
4+
Release Date
June 03, 2025
ISBN
978-1665962742
Buy This Book
     
Discover how Lillian Bounds Disney helped shape the Disney legacy as a cartoon artist and innovator in this “insightful and inspiring” (School Library Journal, starred review) picture book biography, perfect for Disney fans everywhere!

As a child, Lilly learned that working behind-the-scenes was its own special talent. When she grew up, her magical sense of adventure led her to the Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio. She became one of the first women in the animation industry, where she worked as an ink and paint artist and later, as the studio’s first secretary.

After Lilly and Walt fell in love, they got married in 1925, and Lilly continued adding her own magic to Walt’s wild ideas—including encouraging him to keep trying cartoons when the studio was in danger of closing and giving Mickey Mouse his name. Together, they became an unstoppable team. From cartoon ideas to theme park innovations, Lilly helped shape Disney history.

Editor review

1 review
A Magical Look into the Life of Lillian B. Disney
(Updated: June 08, 2026)
Overall rating
 
4.3
Writing Style
 
4.0
Illustrations/Photos (if applicable)
 
5.0
Learning Value
 
4.0
Lillian B. Disney’s life is presented to kids in the book THE WOMAN BEHIND THE MAGIC. Showing her early life to when she begins working for and eventually marrying Walt Disney, this book takes readers through her life. It shows the ups and some of the downs.

I had only heard about Lillian B. Disney in passing. I’d never actually heard anything about her past before this. So, learning more about her was a wonderous journey. At the beginning her life is so ordinary, but then she takes a chance and finds something truly magical. The book is short but it seems to touch on many of the events of her life that made her who she was.

The illustrations are beautiful. Simple but clean, almost reminiscent of a Disney cartoon. The book has a very colorful palette that seems almost muted. It’s not overly bright and vivid, but there are still a lot of colors being used.

A simple but fun biography, THE WOMAN BEHIND THE MAGIC shows the magic that defined Lillian B. Disney’s life. It’s a beautiful look into the life of a woman many people probably don’t know.
Comments (0) | Was this review helpful? 0 0

User reviews

There are no user reviews for this listing.
Already have an account? or Create an account