Customer Reviews

Hippo! No, Rhino

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The familiar confusion of the hippo and the rhino sets the action for "Hippo, Not Rhino," a clver but mixed bag of verbal and visual treats. A lowly zoo-keeper (not necessarily a union worker, nor a summer intern, as another reviewer surmised), places a "Hippo" sign in front of the Rhino enclosure, and walks off, whistling. (It's not clear whether this is an act of ignorance or mischief, my own assumption is that he simply doesn't know, but doesn't take the time to check either--the surprise conclusion offers more fodder for debate.)

Rhino certainly knows he's a rhino and not a hippo, and looks aghast at the sign. When two pairs of mostly unattractive people (what, for humorous effect? to show that people may look as strange as zoo animals?) walk by and, also ignorant, call the rhino a hippo--the rhino answers angrily. A nearly bald blue-face women wearing a gaudy purple and fruited (garlic?) hat accompanies a green-jacketed elderly man whose pants look like an artichoke. Above them are messy, purposefully ugly splotches of paint, as if their presumably ugly personalities have leak into the air above them. Natually, they get the treatment:

"Hippo" [the woman]
"No, Rhino" [turn the page]
"FIX the SIGN-O!" [a very angry rhino]

I mention the aesthetics of the "pencil, ink, marker, watercolor, gouache, colored pencil, pastel, and cut paper" (from the publisher's information sheet preceeding the book) illustrations because consumers and potential readers may not enjoy Newman's persistant smudgy and garbaged-out illustrations. If you're a Ralph Steadman fan, or you liked Chris Raschka's pictures for Jules Feiffer's "The Hello, Goodbye Window," you're ready for these, but Steadman draws primarily for adults and Raschka's skilled atmospherics mesh well with the story's theme. There's sometimes unappetizing about this effort, as shown by what happens after the Rhino sends the first couple scurrying: After failing to move the sign with his tail, he hurls one of the two birds on his back at the sign. This doesn't work either, and the bird falls--slapstick-like--to the ground.

A second, younger couple arrives, a pleasant young woman, and a young man who might be every father's nightmare. With his green face and fingers (the latter resemble a reptile), and looking like an older "Pigpen" with his dirt kicking around his bell bottoms, he coos "...HIPPOOO." In sequence sure to draw laughs, the Rhino quietly replies, "Nooo...Rhinooo. [turn the page], then yells,"THAT's NOT MINE-O!," motioning towards the offending sign. Finally, one helpful, familiar sort of boy (although he's wearing dayglo yellow-green clothing; there goes my theory of the colors expressing personalities!), who obviosuly paid attention during school, helpfully changes the sign, and the blue rhino finally smiles, the pages look cleaner, the two birds sleep peacefully on top, perhaps even the lion sleeps tonight...

Except, over at another part of the zoo, an annoyed purple hippo (not a rhino) glares at a new sign--left by that same whistling same staffer-- pointing at him unforgiveingly: "Porcupino-O." It's a glorious finishing touch that adds some needed cohesion and good-natured fun.

I imagine that this book that will be admired by adults more than it is liked by small kids. The imagery is clever, but it can be confusing as well (e.g., a through-the-viewfinder picture of the rhino, the profiles of the visitors including a decapitated profile of blue-faced woman's head, the overall artistically skilled but unappealing grundge sensibility). The motivation of the sign misplacer is confusing as well. Perhaps the best element of this story is the one that's not entirely told--what other confusions and person/angry animal confrontations will the misplaced signs leave in their wake. Of course, that's the story you may want to talk about with your young audience, and that stimulation may be the best thing about this imaginative but mixed collection of comedy and humorous melodrama.

Hippo! No, Rhino! by Jeff Newman is a witty tale of the frustration undergone by Rhino when a zookeeper puts up the wrong sign. Instead of putting up a sign that says "Rhino", the zookeeper puts up a "Hippo" sign. Everyone who goes over to see Rhino thinks he's a Hippo. Rhino becomes very frustrated with the visitors always thinking he's a Hippo but one day, a little boy comes by and knows that Rhino is a Rhino and this makes him feel so much better.

In spite of the grief caused by the first mistake, the zoo keeper doesn't learn his lesson.

Reading this book with your child is a fun way to open discussion about the zoo and the differences between a rhino and a hippo. Being that it has few words and moves quickly, this book would make a wonderful addition to the library of a child who is just learning to read.

- Elaine Russo, BookBoo

This is a beautiful picture book, richly illustrated by Newman, who lets his artwork tell the story of a rhino suffering from mistaken identity. Newman's colorful and expressive characters are not only fun, they guide the reader smoothly through his touching tale, allowing the reader to sympathize with poor rhino and cheer for the little hero who may help him. Add this book to your child's library and it will remain a favorite -- a perfect example of how art (and just a handful of words) is used to express feelings and experiences.

Newman's second book is a gem! As with his first, Reginald, he illustrates with an incomparable talent. Hippo, however, is a very special addition to any child's collection. Readers actually have to look closely at the characters' facial expressions and body language in order to tell the story. What a refreshing idea! Kids are not spoon fed ideas or a story with this book; they must create the story themselves. What is NOT said is what is so special about this book. In an age of too much stimuli and information, this is truly a very sophisticated concept and great way for kids to slow down and really read a book, each reading bearing new discoveries and subtleties. Great book!

This book is filled with great pictures for kids just reading to too young to read for themselves. The story is told through the pictures, so it is fun and easy for them to follow along. Our son really loves us to read it to him, and I highly recommend it as a first book.

Rhino is content with his zoo life, until one day the zookeeper gives Rhino a new - and wrong - sign. Now everyone expects him to be a hippo - and nobody will fix the sign-o. What's a rhino to do? Rhino needs a solution, fast in this zany and fun story which uses a minimum of words and plenty of color pictures to get the message across.

Describing this book is going to take more words than are in it, all of which more or less rhyme with "rhino." And that's good, because there aren't many books that manage to be uncomplicated and hilarious at the same time.

See, there's this rhino. And a sign. But the sign says - you got it - hippo! And it's all the zookeeper's fault. Probably a union guy. Or maybe the summer intern. Then there are various hip-looking tourists, who aren't much smarter.

And then, of course, there's one wise little boy who can read, just like my little boy now, who loves this book to death. Literally. Atop the watercolor and marker and ink, there's a smudge of toothpaste and what looks like chocolate, though it could be gravy, and plenty of creases and bends. I think it adds to the expressionistic feel, personally.

Because you'd have to be colorblind not to "read" the hues as the big, blue hippo sinks into a dark funk, and various characters' green or blue or yellow skin tones say a lot about them too. There's a '60s feel to the art, maybe a touch of those Little Golden Books now making a comeback, but the sensibility is entirely snarky post-modern.

I keep seeing this book atop bloggers' lists of favorites, which it deserves, because you're never too young to feel for the oppressed rhino in all of us.

Just plain excellent illustrations in Hippo! As with the precedent set in Reginald (his other book) there is a lot to see on every page. While the story line in Reginald was hysterical, Rhino might be even more clever. The whole story is told through the facial expressions of the hilarious characters...and not a lot of text. Very fun to read and a book that withstands the over and over test.

BD

This book is soo much fun to look at and read. There are not many words, but soooo much is said!