HIPPO! NO, RHINO!
by Jeff Newman & illustrated by Jeff Newman
In this oddball but ultimately tender zoo episode, a clueless keeper carelessly posts a sign identifying a rhino as a hippo—to the rhino’s loudly expressed objections. Newman creates a minimally detailed setting, using spatters and splashes of color against plain white backgrounds, so that the red sign and the huge, hugely irritated blue rhino are the main visual elements. After its bellows (“THAT’S NOT MINE-O!”) scare off several strangely rendered passersby, the rhino sinks into despondency—until a compassionate lad, having found the proper sign, replaces the other, giving the creature a comforting pat. With wordage so trimmed down that there isn’t even a title page, the pictures carry most of the plot and humor, along with the simple pleasure that comes from doing a good deed. Engaging, if mannered. (Picture book. 5-7)