Plot
The Sultan of Zanzibar has a harbor infested with sharks, which makes it impossible for ships to trade with him. In an attempt to fix the problem, he brings twelve hippos into the harbor to keep the sharks away. His idea works well enough, but once the hippos are no longer a novelty and the people no longer feed them, they begin to starve. After the hungry hippos rampage through the city looking for food, Aban-Khan, the king's adviser, slaughters all the hippos except one, a little hippo named Hugo. Hugo escapes across the sea to the city of Dar es Salaam, on the African mainland.
A group of children find Hugo and attempt to hide him as best they can, building a garden to feed and take care of him. However, Hugo is discovered and the garden is burned to prevent the children wasting their time with him and neglecting their schoolwork. Hugo is forced to scavenge from the local farms for food, and is put on trial for the damage his nighttime raids caused.
Fortunately, the children manage to contact the Sultan who agrees to appear in court to speak for Hugo. The ruler makes a powerfully impassioned speech about how the hippos were mistreated both by their neglect and their uncalled for culling, which removes all doubt that Hugo is the true injured party in this affair. As a result, the hippo is released and the children agree to care for the hippo for the rest of his days.
Read more about this topic: Hugo The Hippo
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—John Ashbery (b. 1927)
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