The Child's Elephant

A big and important story . . . that smoulders in the mind long after the final page

Annabel Pitcher, Guardian

Exciting, funny and sadly topical . . . My children’s book of the year for 8-11s

Amanda Craig, New Statesman

A compelling story which has its roots in reality, it is a real page-turner as the reader is anxious to find out what happens to the pair.

Parents in Touch

The story is remarkably free from sentimentality and anthropomorphism, and the author does not talk down to the children who will form her audience. Like Rudyard Kipling (to whose folk tale The Elephant’s Child this is surely a tribute), Campbell-Johnston shows a deep knowledge of African culture, with lush metaphors and precise descriptions of locations, smells and weather.

Rebecca Foster, We Love This Book

I cannot trumpet this book loudly enough. Scary, funny, romantic, heart-warming; an elephant book you won’t forget

Michael Morpurgo

Beautifully written . . . The Child's Elephant sings with a formidable talent, imagination and passion

The Times

Lyrical, compelling and totally convincing . . . a great new children’s classic

The Times, Saturday Review

A heart-wrenching and sometimes terrifying tale . . . Compulsive reading

Children's Books Ireland

Pulls no punches . . . There’s a moving, almost spiritual ending

Independent on Sunday

I cannot trumpet this book loudly enough. Scary, funny, romantic, heart-warming; an elephant book you won’t forget

Michael Morpurgo

Rachel Campbell-Johnston's work is as vivid as it is moving

The Sunday Review

Rachel Campbell-Johnston's work is as vivid as it is moving

The Sunday Review

Lyrical, compelling and totally convincing . . . a great new children’s classic

The Times, Saturday Review

A big and important story . . . that smoulders in the mind long after the final page

Annabel Pitcher, Guardian

This beautifully written story is a new departure which draws on her (Rachel Campbell-Johnston's) original training as a zoologist. The Child's Elephant sings with a formidable talent, imagination and passion.

Amanda Craig, The Times, Saturday Review

This powerful story is as huge as the African savannah it describes.

Carousel

The Child’s Elephant is a captivating and deeply affecting book, exceptional both for the in-the-field research that has gone into writing it, and for the writing itself which is mesmerising.

Caroline Sanderson, Books for Keeps

Pulls no punches, but there's a moving, almost spiritual ending

the Independent

Rachel Campbell-Johnson lyrically conveys much about life in contemporary Africa: its beauty, its communities and many of the issues surrounding its poverty...This is an unforgettable, beautiful and moving novel about the powerful bond between an elephant and a child.

Book Trust

A compelling story which has its roots in reality, it is a real page-turner

Parents in Touch

The extraordinary story of the incredible friendship between a boy and an elephant, and their survival against all the odds.

Gransnet

Shows a deep knowledge of African culture, with lush metaphors and precise descriptions of locations, smells and weather.

Rebecca Foster, We Love This Book

Beautifully conveys life in a traditional African village . . . the sights, smells, tastes and colours . . . Reading this left me wanting to find out more about both the place and the background to this story.

The Book Bag

This is an extraordinary book

The Book Bag

This is an amazing story . . . Definitely for Michael Morpurgo fans and also Gill Lewis and Lauren St John fans. I think almost anyone should read it.

We Sat Down

This is a novel that will stay with me forever. I recommend The Child’s Elephant 100%!

Little M, We Sat Down

My children's book of the year for 8-11s

Amanda Craig, New Statesman

A must-read for both the old and young, it's a triumph in children's literature that you will never forget

Cirencester Life