Mr Gumpy's Rhino

by John Burningham

Mr Gumpy is off on an adventure! This time he’s rescuing a rhino who’s lost its parents… But growing rhinos needs lots of food. Will Charlie the rhino and Mr Gumpy manage to make a happy home together?

A madcap adventure for children, adults and rhinos alike.

Praise for Mr Gumpy’s Outing – winner of the Kate Greenaway Medal"
“A story of real drama observed with gentle humour”

Genres: Animals

32 pages, Hardcover

Published August 1, 2019

About the author

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Bur...

Married to Helen Oxenbury They have one son and two daughters.

John Burningham was born in 1936 in Farnham, Surrey, and attended the alternative school, Summerhill. In 1954 he spent two years travelling through Italy, Yugoslavia and Israel, working at a variety of jobs.

From 1956-1959, he studied at the Central School of Art, after which he designed posters for London Transport and the British Transport Commission. He also spent a year on an animated puppet film in the Middle East. He then became a writer and illustrator of children's books, his first book, Borka: The Adventures of a Goose With No Feathers (1963) winning the Kate Greenaway Medal in 1963, an achievement he repeated with Mr Gumpy's Outing (1970).

Since then, he has written and illustrated many children's books. He is also a freelance designer of murals, exhibitions models, magazine illustrations and advertisements.

Reviews

[Hilary · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a lovely story that starts with Mr Gumpy finding an orphaned baby rhino in Africa. Sadly the rhino's mother was killed for her horns. The rest of the story follows this baby rhino, now called Charlie as he starts a new life in England with Mr Gumpy. In true Burningham style, there are some very cute illustrations, plenty of humour and a far fetched storyline that works well. I really enjoyed this book and was sad to learn it was published posthumously. This reminded me of Diana's Rhinoceros which is an absolute favourite of ours by Edward Ardizzone.

[Pauline · Rating 4 out of 5]

Award winning author-illustrator John Birmingham died in January 2019 and this book is published posthumously. The plight of the near extinction of rhinoceros in Africa as they are poached for their horns was a cause that Birmingham felt strongly about. Although the idea for the story of a rhinoceros who has been orphaned came to him 40 years ago he decided to tell this tale with the help of old favourite Mr Gumpy. Although it is about a serious topic it has all the hallmarks of adventure and silliness that one expects in a Mr Gumpy book.

Suitable for 3+

[Becky Sparkes]

I thought this was a beautifully illustrated picture book with some key themes that could be explored with children. Mr. Gumpy is on an adventure in Africa this time, this can lead to a geography topic learning about the continents of the world and also doing a study comparing a small village in the UK with a village in a non - European country (both of which are in the KS1 NC). When Mr Gumpy first meets the rhino he is sad and has lost his mother and father who's horns and been taken - this could lead to the children learning about dehorning rhinos and what the horns are used for.
When on his travels with the rhino Mr Gumpy meets some Bedouins along his way - Bedouins are Sunni Muslims who are found in the Middle East or North Africa. This would link nicely to an RE topic learning but different regions and finding out more about muslim traditions and beliefs.
This book can also lead to some nice art work as the illustrator in the book uses a mixture of sketches, pastels and watercolours in their pictures. This could lead to a nice display of the children art in a similar style.

[Nick Swarbrick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Taken alongside the great Mr Gumpy books, this lacks an expected rhythm and shape - but were it not for its fantastic predecessors it would rank far higher for me. Mr Gumpy is in a rural African setting (a bit too rural and pan-African?) and ends up with a baby rhino to look after; back at home he finds it gainful employment, and there are shades of Briggs’ Elephant in the ride he gives the children.
Not his best, but charming and humorous: a rhino in a bunk bed was a real joy.