The Lost Galumpus

by Joseph Helgerson

A time-traveling woolly mammoth finds refuge and rescue at the unlikely hands of a possum and his community of woodland friends in this humorous middle grade for fans of The Secret Lake and The Wild Robot . Features charming black-and-white interior illustrations by Udayana Lugo. When a furry, four-legged beast from the distant past appears in their park, the local animals are concerned about unwanted attention from humans. Gilly the Possum, assistant to raccoon Mayor Crawdaddy, is tasked with figuring out where the lost galumpus came from . . . and how to get him home again. While Gilly and the Mayor don’t agree on much, they can agree on one with a huge blizzard rolling in, the galumpus needs their help, no matter where he came from. This laugh-out-loud illustrated adventure has the whole woodland community in Theodore Wirth Park considering the best way to welcome a newcomer—and what generosity in the face of unthinkable circumstances can mean.

Genres: Fantasy, Animals, Childrens, Friendship, Juvenile, Middle Grade

1 pages, Audio CD

First published January 10, 2023

About the author

Joseph Helgerson was born and raised along the Mississippi River. Catfish and river trolls were his early pals. During the flood of ‘51 he had to be evacuated from his home by a leaky rowboat. The first school he attended was a one-room country schoolhouse that overlooked the river near Queens Bluff, Minnesota. Today he keeps an eye on the river as it passes through the twin cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul, where he lives with his family.

Reviews

[Kristin · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an unusual book stuffed with many science fiction and fantasy tropes - too many in my mind. Plus I’m not sure a middle school or younger child would hang in there to read an almost-400 page book with a somewhat uneven plot and pacing.

This book does have a message about being appreciated that resolves well, but its message isn’t very transparent. This message is the only reason I gave it three ⭐️s instead of two.

[Tobia]

Stopped on page 131. Started out interesting but didn’t pick. A little to flat, boring characters, all over the place. Didn’t like the bickering.

[Therearenobadbooks · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's a creative story of a time-traveling mammoth who needs help getting home. I've never read anything like this. The narrator is the best thing. A possum who has the best introspection moments and quick answers to complicated questions (that need answers in just a few words.)

The content is perfect for young readers and middle graders with subtly presented topics that can be further discussed. I also noticed a few times the mention of what is a safe environment/place: exploring fear in other levels too. (Fear of not making their dreams come true, growing up, having a job...)

The dialogue helps the story with humor and a few interesting deep thoughts. The recommended age is 8-12, but I would say young readers who like dense stories will appreciate it more. This one takes its time to start and when we reach 70% feels a bit too long and in general slow for some young readers to commit. But there is a number of improbabilities and humor that will keep the fans of this style of fiction captive like The Wild Robot.

It's well-written and I love the illustrations. The characters often have names that reference beloved famous fictional characters and adults will appreciate it too.

[Becky · Rating 3 out of 5]

First sentence: Getting Mayor Crawdaddy out of his oak tree usually took a catastrophe. Sometimes two. He was a raccon who liked his comforts. "We're being invaded!" I called out, stretching things a bit on account of the snowstorm I was standing in. Possum fur isn't as warm as it could be, especially after dark.

Premise/plot: This is the premise that grabbed me, "A time-traveling woolly mammoth finds refuge and rescue at the unlikely hands of a possum and his community of woodland friends." The first sentence sealed the deal. Gilly [a possum] narrates this action-packed charmer.

Essentially, the story goes like this, a blizzard is interrupted by the sudden appearance of a HUGE SOMEBODY. No one in the woods--including Gilly and Mayor Crawdaddy [the raccoon]--know *what* this "Galumpus" is. The only story they're being told is that this "Galumpus" wished herself there...and that she's too scared to want to go back. Eventually--with a little help from a futuristic robot--everyone learns that time travel has occurred. There's a small window of time to right things...

My thoughts: This one is a bit wild and whimsical. Talking animals make it animal fantasy, yet, the robots and the reality of time travel make it science fiction. Regardless of its classification as "science fiction" or "fantasy" this one is action-packed. At times it can be a bit busy...yet despite it being busy, it held onto charm from cover to cover.

[Heather Lee · Rating 4 out of 5]

My family has a special place in our hearts for Joseph Helgerson. We came upon Horns and Wrinkles at a very bleak point and that story helped see us through. So I was delighted when I saw a new book out! The Lost Galumpus is imaginative and funny with winning characters. My two favorites were the protagonist, an opossum named Gilly, and the mayor, a raccoon named Mayor Crawdaddy. The story takes place in a blizzard so I had to read under layers of blankets, but it made me laugh outloud with its creativity. I enjoyed this new read and the narrator did an excellent job for all of the different characters.

[Lauren Z · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute story told by Gilly a possum, who is assistant to Mayor Crawdaddy and is called Uncle Fester by Ruth a human girl. Gilly and a cast of other cute animals discover a woolly mammoth (the galumpus) they name Twigs during a massive blizzard. The animals, Ruth, and a robotic smoky the bear have to bring Twigs back to his own time, while warding off cave men who are hunting Twigs.

Gilly and the other animals are adorable- I love how Mayor Crawdaddy and the Earl of Sussex bicker back and forth. The Lost Galumpus is a sweet adventure but I wish it was a shorter book.

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

I almost quit on this book. I'm just not a fan of this narration style, which is similar to Richard Peck. There were also some unbelievable twists that I didn't love at first. I'm glad I stuck with it though, because it ended up being a cute story. Not sure I'll get a lot of kids to pick up a book that's almost 400 pages, but I think it would work for the right audience.

[Lauren Morris · Rating 4 out of 5]

I got this ARC from Turning Page Bookshop in Goose Creek, SC. Such a heartfelt book! It’s about a Wolly mammoth getting lost from home and time travels to a completely different time period. He solicits help from the animals in the zoo. I love the illustrations! Longer than I expected so it dragged on some parts but it’s filled some great life lessons!

[Sneha · Rating 4 out of 5]

#TheLostGalumpus #Joseph Helgerson #HarperCollinsChildrensBooks #ClarionBooks #NetGalley

This tells the story of a time-traveling woolly mammoth who finds refuge with a possum and his woodland friends. Humorous and engaging, this is a fun and entertaining read that will keep young readers engaged from start to finish. It is a great choice for kids who love animals and time-travel stories.

[Annie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is such a sweet story! I enjoyed it a lot. There is some manipulation by the raccoon mayor and the animals of Theodore Wirth Park are all a bit grouchy but overall it is very adorable.

Found in L4M YT Volume 16.

[PottWab Regional Library]

SM

[Jamie Helaudais · Rating 3 out of 5]

An ARC was provided in exchange for an honest review. This did not influence my thoughts in any way.

This was a cute story about a lost woolly mammoth who meets a group of woodland creatures. I really enjoyed the illustrations. When I requested this book I was under the impression that it was a children's picture book that I could read to my nephew. As this book is almost 400 pages, I'll have to wait a few years to do that.

[Stephanie (Gorelenore) Cover2CoverBlog · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was such a strange middle grade book. It was sci-fi, fantasy with animal characters.

The woodland animals have jsut found a Galumpus in the creek area of the park and he seems lost, telling them that his home is gone. They find out that he is actually a Wooly Mammoth from the past that has suddenly appeared in the park. Gilly the Possum is trying to help him while Mayer Crawdaddy is mostly scared of all things and says they should leave him be. Gilly tried to get human help by way of a little girl that she has befriended, but then a robot from the future also shows up in the form of the Forest Fire Prevention bear... but green. She is part of the time travel too, the mammoth and the robot were both part of a time-rift and have arrived in the park.

It was all so strange and off-the-wall that it was hard to follow. I thin kthat younger readers might like the concept but also have a lot of questions about why and how, but also what is doing on. It also reads a little like it is a series, although it is not, where the you just jump in and there is little explanation about the characters and their world. The craziness of it all kinda of takes away from that confusion because there is a lot of other wierd stuff that happens. That said, I found it hard to stay focused during my reading. It was fun, but hard to follow. I wanted more explanation, and less jumping around... there was a lot of movement through the town and park withouth much description.

[Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is such a sweet story! I enjoyed it a lot. There is some manipulation by the raccoon mayor and the animals of Theodore Wirth Park are all a bit grouchy but overall it is very adorable.

Found in L4M YT Volume 61. (Volume 16(B)).