Who Wants a Cheap Rhinoceros? [Hardcover]

Shel Silverstein (Author, Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 2009

"This revised and expanded edition of the original 1964 work provides a delightful showcase for Silverstein's humor. It seems that there is this rhinoceros for sale . . . cheap . . . and there are any number of unusual but practical advantages to having one . . . Silverstein's wit comes shining through each page of expressive line drawings. . . ."--School Library Journal.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Shel Silverstein is best known as a children's-book author who wrote and illustrated a number of bestselling books that have charmed millions of readers of all ages. Crossing many artistic boundaries, he was also a noted songwriter and an accomplshed playwright. Silverstein first came to prominence in the 1950s as a cartoonist for Playboy, where he assumed the role of roving ambassador for the up-and-coming magazine. This esteemed assignment -- due in no small part to his friendship with Hugh M. Hefner -- was the auspicious beginning of a most amazing career. Shel Silverstein died in 1999.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 64 pages
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books For Young Readers (September 1, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1416996133
• ISBN-13: 978-1416996132
• Product Dimensions: 10.1 x 8.7 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.1 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,133,834 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

"And now, children, your Uncle Shelby is going to tell you a story about a very strange lion- in fact, the strangest lion I have ever met." So begins Shel Silverstein's very first children's book, Lafcadio, the Lion Who Shot Back. It's funny and sad and has made readers laugh and think since it was published in 1963. It was followed the next year by three more books. The first of them, The Giving Tree, is a moving story about the love of a tree for a boy. Shel returned to humor the same year with A Giraffe and a Half, delighting readers with a most riotous ending. The third book in 1964 was Uncle Shelby's Zoo Don't Bump the Glump! and Other Fantasies, Shel's first poetry collection, and his first and only book illustrated in full color. It combined his unique imagination and bold brand of humor in this collection of silly and scary creatures. Shel's second collection of poems and drawings, Where the Sidewalk Ends, was published in 1974. His recording of the poems won him a Grammy for best Children's Album. In this collection, Shel invited children to dream and dare to imagine the impossible, from a hippopotamus sandwich to the longest nose in the world. With his next collection of poems and drawings, A Light in the Attic, published in 1981, Shel asked his readers to turn the light on in their attics, to put something silly in the world, and not to be discouraged by the Whatifs. Instead he urged readers to catch the moon or invite a dinosaur to dinner- to have fun! A Light in the Attic was the first children's book to break onto the New York Times Bestseller List, where it stayed for a record-breaking 182 weeks. The last book that was published before his death in 1999 was Falling Up (1996). Like his other books, it is filled with unforgettable characters. Shel Silverstein's legacy continued with the release of a new work,Runny Babbit, the first posthumous publication conceived and completed before his death and released in March 2005. Witty and wondrous, Runny Babbit is a poetry collection of simple spoonerismsH, which twist the tongue and tease the mind. Don't Bump the Glump! And Other Fantasies was recently reissued in 2008 after being unavailable for over 30 years. Shel was always a believer in letting his work do the talking for him--few authors have ever done it better.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A treasure, August 15, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Who Wants a Cheap Rhinoceros? (Hardcover)

Not only is this a highly imaginative book for children, but it also about love, vulnerability and humor. Between the ages of 4 to 8, children have generally become well aware of the imperfections in their parents and to a more limited extent in the world, as well. Regrettably, it is often parents who are the last to face the truth. If anyone can understand Charlie Brown's love for a skinny X-mas tree, then you will appreciate this funny, little, love story between a child and a used rhinoceros. When a book has great cartoons like this one, don't just give the book to your kid to read and look at, but read it together and enjoy. My own daughter is now an adult, but when she was in this in age range, she made me read it to her before bed, every night, and sometimes, twice....

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars For a growing imagination, September 19, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Who Wants a Cheap Rhinoceros? (Hardcover)

This book came out when I was four and is one of only two books I remember from my childhood so it holds a special place in my memory. This is a book about love and affection. It is also a book that stretches one's imagination as you must imagine all the possible uses of a rhino. Frankly, the book is funny. Does the book contain certain passages that some parents might find objectionable? Opening a beer can with the horn? Perhaps politically incoreect, but give a child credit in just enjoying this story of love and imagination. I can't wait for my daughter to be old enough for me to read this book to her.

13 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Not his best, but still pretty good, August 4, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Who Wants a Cheap Rhinoceros? (Hardcover)

1964 was a pretty busy year for Shel Silverstein. not only was he travelling around the world making strange observations as Playboy's roving reporter, but he had 4 books published: The Giving Tree (which has been reviewed and analyzed to death, if you ask me), A Giraffe and a Half, Uncle Shelby's Zoo: Don't Bump the Glump (inexplicably out of print) and this little book, later revised in 1983.

Quite honestly, I didn't get a real impression of this book. It was--dare I say it?--rather cute. However, judging from the negative review previously posted, perhaps Shel's humor did manage to poke its way through the simplistic narrative and rhyme. In other words, perhaps "Rhinoceros" is worth another look.

Still, I have to wonder--it was the only book of his published at MacMillan (not his usual haunts of S&S and Harper&Row/Collins) and I guess I am curious at the genesis of its publication. But perhaps that is something I shall never know.