In Kimura and Abe’s earlier book, One Stormy Night, a goat and a wolf spend a stormy night huddled together in a hut and, because they can’t see each other, have a friendly conversation in which they discover they have a lot in common. As the first book draws to a close, the two animals have agreed to get together for lunch the following day. One Sunny Day is the story of friends discovering that they are also predator and prey, and deciding whether friendship or predation takes precedence.

Fraught with even more tension and humor than its predecessor, One Sunny Day is the prefect sequel, arguably better than the book that spawned it. "I mean, it’s like I’ve made a date for lunch — with lunch!" says the wolf, who immediately apologizes. "That’s all right," the goat replies. "I know if you really wanted to gobble me up, you’d have done so just now, when we met in front of the hut." But when the wolf drops his lunch into a ravine, he begins to look at the goat in a whole new way.

Yuichi Kimura’s wolf has plenty of opportunities to revert to his predatory character. First, after a big lunch of grass, the goat falls asleep. Then a second storm drives the pair into a cave. Finally, as the two part company, the wolf’s belly begins to rumble. "‘I just have to. Can’t help it,’ he muttered." And the next moment he was off and running, heading straight toward the goat. He overtook him in a second. He opened his jaws very wide, and — "

Hiroshi Abe’s illustrations are as bright in the second book as they were dark in the first. There’s an idyllic depiction of mountains in the clouds, a beautifully chaotic picture of the gathering storm, and an astonishing portrait of the wolf making up his mind.

One Stormy Night is a fable about making peace, but One Sunny Day teaches both children and adults — for this book will appeal to all ages — about sustaining peace. It’s a timeless and timely lesson. When will we ever learn?