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PIGS MIGHT FLY

Name: PIGS MIGHT FLY
Author: Mary Rayner
ISBN: 014034537X

illustrated by Mary Rayner & by Dick King-Smith ‧ RELEASE DATE: April 1, 1982

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This British story of a special pig begins with sow Mrs. Barleylove giving birth to eight piglets-one of them a "dag" (runt?) who is also deformed, with odd doglike feet instead of normal trotters. The farmer, whom the pigs call the "Pigman" and consider their servant, takes little Daggie Dogfoot away, as is the fate of all dags, but this one escapes and returns to his mother, causing her to speculate on whether he is destined for something "special." "If pigs can fly" is the other sows' answer to that—but if you then expect little Daggie to fly, you find instead that he learns to swim, taught by his new friends Felicity, a duck, and Isaak, an otter. Then, when a flood strands pigs and farmer foodless on a hilltop, Daggie and Felicity save them all by swimming bravely off for help. With their mission more than accomplished, a helicopter rescue team straps Daggie onto their cable and hoists him home. "Surely Daggie can't really be flying?" says Mrs. Barleylove on sighting him; and Daggie's proud father replies, "He's doing better than that, my dear. Must be something wrong with that thing and the boy's towing it in, butchered if he isn't!" This comes complete with delighted quotes from British reviewers, who probably have a higher tolerance for barnyard whimsy. But anyone charmed enough by the initial fancy to stick with it will indeed be delighted by the ultimate, unexpected fulfillment of the title's promise.

Pub Date: April 1, 1982

ISBN: 014034537X

Page Count: 180

Publisher: Viking

Review Posted Online: April 30, 2012

Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 1, 1982

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ANIMALS

- BOOK REVIEW
HOBART
by Anita Briggs & illustrated by Mary Rayner

- BOOK REVIEW
GARTH PIG STEALS THE SHOW
by Mary Rayner & illustrated by Mary Rayner

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CARPENTER'S HELPER

by Sybil Rosen ; illustrated by Camille Garoche ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 16, 2021

Renata’s wren encounter proves magical, one most children could only wish to experience outside of this lovely story.

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A home-renovation project is interrupted by a family of wrens, allowing a young girl an up-close glimpse of nature.

Renata and her father enjoy working on upgrading their bathroom, installing a clawfoot bathtub, and cutting a space for a new window. One warm night, after Papi leaves the window space open, two wrens begin making a nest in the bathroom. Rather than seeing it as an unfortunate delay of their project, Renata and Papi decide to let the avian carpenters continue their work. Renata witnesses the birth of four chicks as their rosy eggs split open “like coats that are suddenly too small.” Renata finds at a crucial moment that she can help the chicks learn to fly, even with the bittersweet knowledge that it will only hasten their exits from her life. Rosen uses lively language and well-chosen details to move the story of the baby birds forward. The text suggests the strong bond built by this Afro-Latinx father and daughter with their ongoing project without needing to point it out explicitly, a light touch in a picture book full of delicate, well-drawn moments and precise wording. Garoche’s drawings are impressively detailed, from the nest’s many small bits to the developing first feathers on the chicks and the wall smudges and exposed wiring of the renovation. (This book was reviewed digitally with 10-by-20-inch double-page spreads viewed at actual size.)

Renata’s wren encounter proves magical, one most children could only wish to experience outside of this lovely story. (Picture book. 3-7)

Pub Date: March 16, 2021

ISBN: 978-0-593-12320-1

Page Count: 40

Publisher: Schwartz & Wade/Random

Review Posted Online: Jan. 12, 2021

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2021

Categories:

CHILDREN'S ANIMALS | CHILDREN'S SOCIAL THEMES | CHILDREN'S FAMILY

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SPOOKY POOKIE

by Sandra Boynton ; illustrated by Sandra Boynton ‧ RELEASE DATE: July 7, 2015

A pleasant holiday spent with a perfectly charming character.

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One of Boynton's signature characters celebrates Halloween.

It's Halloween time, and Pookie the pig is delighted. Mom helps the little porker pick out the perfect Halloween costume, a process that spans the entire board book. Using an abcb rhyme scheme, Boynton dresses Pookie in a series of cheerful costumes, including a dragon, a bunny, and even a caped superhero. Pookie eventually settles on the holiday classic, a ghost, by way of a bedsheet. Boynton sprinkles in amusing asides to her stanzas as Pookie offers costume commentary ("It's itchy"; "It's hot"; "I feel silly"). Little readers will enjoy the notion of transforming themselves with their own Halloween costumes while reading this book, and a few parents may get some ideas as well. Boynton's clean, sharp illustrations are as good as ever. This is Pookie's first holiday title, but readers will surely welcome more.

A pleasant holiday spent with a perfectly charming character. (Board book. 1-3)