Once Upon a Rhinoceros {Kids Book Review}

Another Friday….another book review… You know the drill right? It’s #BookReviewFriday over here on the blog. Last time I featured the very popular Peppa Pig, so if you missed that, go back and check that review out. Today’s book is a kiddies book aimed at kids up to 3yrs old. I’m not sure that I quite agree with that, but I’ll touch on that at the end. Let’s first get into what ‘Once Upon a Rhinoceros’ is about!

What is the book about?

Rhinoceros has a magnificent horn, which all the animals admire. All, that is, except Hippo. Hippo is jealous of Rhino’s horn, and desperately wants one of her own. While Rhino is asleep, Hippo steals her horn and sets it on her snout. But Hippo quickly discovers that wearing a large and heavy horn brings more problems than rewards. Soon all the other animals are telling her that a rhino horn belongs on a rhinoceros. Hippo starts to doubt her decision, and when she comes face to face with the compassionate Rhino, Hippo understands there is no room in the world for jealousy.

My thoughts

This book is easily Adam’s absolutely favourite book! We read it probably 3 or 4 times a night. He wants to look at the Pink Flamingos, he wants to look at (what he thought was) the evil crocodile and he wants to berate this very naughty Hippo for stealing a horn! This book is very wordy, so I personally think it’s more suited to kids ages 2 – 6. A 2yr old would love the illustrations….and mom would enjoy chuckling as she reads about this silly Hippo and her silly idea…like I do. A 6yr old would enjoy reading this book by themselves. So this is a great book to keep for a good few years for your kids. Adam is a bit rough with the pages, so I need to ensure he is not alone with this book at any point… you know how that ends up for my makeup!

I think this book is lovely and the illustrations are so cute, because you can actually see the personality of the animals in the illustrations. I really love that about it. Also there’s a very cute ending that you and your kids will love! Avril van der Merwe did a very good job with this book and I’m keen to now see some of her other work.

Once Upon a Rhinoceros retails for around R100 and is available at all leading book retailers. This would make a great gift for little kids!

Keep an eye on Penguin Random House SA’s social media pages for more great releases and fun giveaways!

Disclaimer: These books are sent to me as part of PR. I am under no obligation to review them….all thoughts and opinions are my own. Altyd.