Pig Books

My granddaughter, Ellie, loves these books! She was so happy to get it for her birthday.

This review first appeared in the "Ephrata (PA) Review":

When Mama Elephant, Flora, phones six mice to ask if they can look after her "little" Ellie, the mice say yes: "After all, you have to help your friends." Fanciful, clean-cut illustrations humorously display the conundrum the tiny mice face as they care for Ellie. Propelling her stroller uphill to the park is no small task. Pushing her on the swing requires real team effort. This short, sweet story should appeal to young children's sense of proportion-and sense of humor.

5 stars..the illustrations are wonderful, clever and fun and the story has a wonderful twist..great author, illustrator, story
glalley

The tres cerdos brings beautiful illustrations of the true lifestyles of many latinos/mexican-americans living here in the U.S. My third grade students love it especially the fun and detailed pictures. Those children of latino/mexican-american decent can relate to the lifestyles and the children of other decents can learn and appreciate the beauty of the culture. I would give it five stars *****. J. Brewick

My new reader (first grade) can't get enough of this book. We borrowed a copy from the library and had to buy it to keep. Each interactive page entices the reader to keep going and help solve the mystery. My child reads this book to anyone who will listen. Our favorite page has a mirror on it to help decode the backwards message from one of the pull-out pages. We stumbled onto this book on the library shelf and I was surprised to see it in such good condition with all the pull-out pieces inside. This is a definite "keeper" book meant to be owned and read over and over and over.

Mailbox Mice Mystery isn't really suitable for library lending but parents seeking a very special gift for a young reader will relish this caper which provides envelopes with clues for solving the mystery of the missing cheese. When all the cheese in Little Falls disappears, it's up to Watson Mouse to solve the mystery!

My son is three and has memorized this one. It is cute and about the perfect length in words. Ex. Maisy plays her guitar. Plus their is a picture of her and guitar so there ya go for one page. I am a fan of board books since they pages don't rip.

This board book captures my daughter's attention with bright, colourful pictures and very simple words and concepts. Everything that Maisy does in the book, my daughter does, so she can relate, such as: dressing up, making music, dancing, and so on.This was her first Maisy book and now that she has more, it is her favorite character. I recommend it for 6 months - 2 years.

Mama loves lots of things, but most of all is spending time with her children is the message sent in this sweet book. It is told by her children about the activities their mother loves, but sharing her love with them means the most to their family and the sentiment comes across really well. The illustrations are soft and done in watercolor and mesh very well with the text. I'd recommend this book for any mother and her children.

A lovely book to read aloud to child, to give as a gift to all the Mamas you know... Don't miss the magic as Rebecca Kai Dotlich's charming, musical words cavort with a family of lovable pigs created by Kathyryn Brown. A *must have* for Mother's Day and all the other days of the year as well.

How Marcello, an imaginative young mouse overcomes obstacles and outwits the scary cat Ravioli to achieve his dream of movie-making was great fun reading. The writing is lively and the illustrations beautiful. Terrific to share with the kids.

Marcello The Movie Mouse is a colorful picturebook about a young mouse who lives in the Grand Palazzo Theatre. Little Marcello dreams of making his own films someday; but he has no camera and no crew, just endless factory work, and to make things worse the dreadful theatre cat Ravioli is always on the prowl! But Marcello just won't give up, and devotes his all to pursuing his dream - a dream that just might have room for Ravioli as well! A glossary of movie terms and inspirational quotes from great moviemakers round out this delightful storybook for budding film buffs.

Though this story was first published almost forty years ago, it still remains charming. The book tells the story about a little mouse named Martha. Martha is hungry, cold, and starving on the street. Then one day she sees a movie theatre and sneeks inside. Dan, the man who runs the theatre, is glad to see Martha and the two quickly become friends. Martha soon falls in love with movies. She finds herself getting caught up in the action, imagining new places in her mind, and sometimes even acting out what she sees on screen. However, not everyone appreciates a talking, singing, dancing mouse as much as Dan and soon there is trouble.

The story is written in rhyming couplets and the illustrations that accompany the text are a joy to look at. As a huge fan of movies, I'll read just about anything having to do with film or cinema and I have a great appreciation for children's literature, so I thoroughly enjoyed this quaint little story. This would be a good book to read to children from preschool through about the second grade. It also makes a nice gift for anyone who appreciates older children's literature or anyone who is a fan of Arnold Lobel.

This is a very sweet book by one of the greatest children's authors and illustrators of all times. "Martha" tells the story of a lonely mouse who befriends a lonely man who works in a movie house. Martha becomes enchanted with the movies, until some movie-goers discover her and scare her off. She eventually makes her way back to the movie house to save the day with her brilliant stage performance. I read it aloud each year to my second grade classes, and the kids applaud every time. If you can find a copy, I highly recommend it.

This is another great adaptation of a classic story. Mary has a ham instead of a lamb. This ham is destined for showbiz, maybe in "Cinderswine". It has puns and jokes that will keep adults chuckling, but kids will like it, too.

Reading Level: Ages 4-8

Mary's little porker was a real ham - an actor that is - and you can't keep someone with that much talent down on the farm.

I took a stack of picture books to a restaraunt one noon so I could catch up with my review back log. At one point, the manager walked over and asked what was so funny for I was laughing out loud at this Mickey Rooneyesque from-the-farm-to-fame-on-broadway opus. However, I wonder if most kids will really appreciate how funny this book actualy is. Even the wonderful illustrations are dripping with theatrical humor - particularly the page of posters for such smash hits as The Pork Loin King, and Hamadeus. Heck, forget about the kids, get this book for yourself.

- KB Shaw, Publisher
SPECTRUM Children's Book Club
www.incwell.com

This is a really fun story about a family of adventrous. Kids will really enjoy them and grown-ups will have fun reading them too.

Based on my memory of thisbook from 30(?) years ago, it concerns a pig family, the Mellops, who embark on an adventure into a cave. They face not only subterranean wonders, but also a band of robbers hiding their loot. I won't give away the ending because I don't remember it.

Hurray for the Mellops reprints! (Normally, I don't care for exclamation points, but it seemed suitable here.

I took a flyer on this book after seeing the author's more recent book about Ann Coulter (worth your consideration also).

"Pigs" is funny, to the point and right on target. The style is somewhere in the category of a Mike Royko, Dave Barry or Joel Stein.

Enjoy.

Men Are Pigs is a no-holds-barred look at what makes being a man such a moveable feast. One of the funniest books about men that I've ever read. The author has managed to capture the true spirit of the male paradigm. No stone has been left unturned, no dimly light alley unexplored, no social taboo unchallenged. A copy of Men Are Pigs belongs in every man's bathroom reading library and on every woman's "must read" list.