A TREEFUL OF PIGS

The lazy farmer thinks he's safe when he promises to help his wife with the farm work "on the day that pigs grow in trees like apples," but she outwits him at this and every turn—and Anita Lobel makes the treeful of happy, apple-chomping, rope-harnessed pigs a properly silly sight. As it was the farmer who wanted the pigs in the first place and the wife who expressed qualms about the work involved, it's all the more satisfying to witness her ultimate victory—she hides the pigs, then refuses to help him look for them until "the day that you jump out of bed, put on your clothes, and promise never to be lazy again." And as Arnold Lobel lets the pictures tell much of the story, it's all the more delightful to see, each time, how the clever wife deploys the pigs. Charmingly foolish but far from frivolous, this has the roots and home truth of a sturdy folk tale (say "The Little Red Hen")—plus the blooming, bright good humor of Anita Lobel's flowery farm, where at the finally industrious day's end "the farmer, the farmer's wife and the pigs sat down [together] to a delicious dinner of corn pudding and hot corn muffins." (Just one question: considering who does most of the work throughout, wouldn't "the farmer" and "the farmer's husband" be a likelier designation?)