posted on 30 Mar 2017

How do you do Mr Gnu? by Billy Coughlan, illustrated by Maddie Frost

I’m not sure that I’ve ever come across a picture book with a gnu as the main protagonist before and was interested to know whether it was chosen to rhyme with ‘How do you do?’ or because the author had a particular fondness for this under represented large and ungainly animal. After doing a bit of research I found the famous Flanders and Swann song called ‘I’m A Gnu’   which uses the same rhyme, and I suppose it might well have been an inspiration.

He is certainly an endearing character as he stares out at us wistfully from the front cover – not fierce at all. My curiosity was immediately piqued by the incongruity of him holding a cup of tea and an open envelope with a crown on it plus the rather anxious looking people behind him, one being a police woman with a radio. I can imagine talking with children about what on earth they think this story is going to be all about and getting some interesting speculation.

It soon becomes clear that Mr Gnu, who lives at the zoo, has received a written invitation to tea with the queen and so needs some help in preparing for this momentous occasion. I can see an opportunity for another story here as the queen surely needs to have help in preparing to receive him, this is the kind of activity that children would love to be involved with.

He escapes from his confines and lumbers off to learn some manners from people and animals in the wider world. This causes understandably alarmed looks on various people’s faces as he tries hard to be friendly. There is plenty to talk about in the brightly coloured collage effect illustrations – for instance I liked him nibbling a little girl’s plait with the zookeeper in the background running to stop him. She continues to keep an eye on him as Mr Gnu progresses with learning potentially useful new tricks from dogs, a raven, fish and other creatures. I particularly liked the double page spread with him casually eating an ice cream cone as he looks at the skeleton of a dinosaur in the museum that has sound effects, and decides that he want to roar in the same way. By this time there are two police officers running in the background, presumably as part of the operation to recapture him. 

As he gets nearer to the palace he encounters the horses on Horse Guards Parade and learns how to neigh and then a little girl sitting in her pushchair who teaches him how to blow raspberries. At last he sees the queen approaching in her carriage and bows low. One woman in the crowd behind him looks outraged, several horse guards stare out goggle eyed and the two police officers exchange a concerned look as Mr Gnu is pictured on the final double page spread sitting comfortably with the queen in her carriage. She looks on rather disapprovingly as he slurps his cup of tea with his tongue out. Will he ever be invited to join her again? Whatever might happen next?

This is a very jolly picture book with minimal but interesting text that unusually includes vocabulary like ‘repertoire, ‘exquisite, and ‘eloquence’.  There is lots of detail to find in the pictures and   opportunities throughout for lively and noisy audience participation - a group of young children being encouraged to blow raspberries and slurp is always a bonus in my opinion. And they could maybe learn the song as well.

Karen Argent

March 2017