A Hippo Lives in Havelock is a quintessential Kiwi story. Havelock could be any town in New Zealand and the sense of wonder at a hippo coming to reside in the town could be felt by any little Kiwi kid in their own patch of New Zealand. Scott Tulloch's detailed illustrations depict things us Kiwis are familiar with: the NZ Post postie on a bike, camping scenes, the Cook Strait ferry, campervans, our wildlife and seashells, colonial wooden buildings, town halls and community gardens. The clever text is a chance to promote stories of ourselves in our own backyard. The big question, of course, is how does a hippo fit into all of this?