A gentle story from the Philippines about kindness—with a lovable baby rhino character, and a strong argument for protecting the environment and making change.

Right in the middle of the crowded, bustling city, Maya meets a baby rhinoceros. “Excuse me,” he says politely, “I am lost.”

Maya is sure she can help the baby rhino find his home, where there are tall trees, plants with giant, yummy leaves and where the ground is covered in delicious grass. They walk and walk, but can find only streets and buildings—nowhere a little rhino can feel at home.

Maya doesn’t give up. She takes the baby rhino to her own home and gathers plants and flowers to help him feel at home. Kind neighbors help by bringing more. The polite little rhino is glad. “You made me my own jungle,” he says. In the morning he is gone, and there is a “thank you” message from his mummy. Maya is happy for him and hopes he will come back one day to visit. But she knows she must make changes to her crowded, polluted city.

Together Maya and her neighbors get to work and create a green city environment where people are happy and where a baby rhino might also feel at home... and perhaps return to visit Maya.

Candy Gourlay is an internationally acclaimed writer of children’s books, whose work is published in many languages across the world. She is the author of the highly acclaimed Tall Story, Is it a Mermaid?!, and Bone Talk. Born in the Philippines, Candy now lives in London. She writes, “The last rhinos of Southeast Asia now live in Indonesia, but they are on the brink of extinction. Wouldn’t it be lovely if we could make our world a place a baby rhinoceros can call home?”

Jamie Bauza is an illustrator, designer and crafter, based in Manila, Philippines. She is a graduate of Ateneo de Manila University, where she received a Visual Arts Award. In 2018 she attended the Summer Illustration Residency at the School of Visual Arts, New York. Jamie is a member and past president of Ang INK, a Philippine association of artists committed to the creation and promotion of illustration for children.