Review by Booklist Review
Ages 4-7. Bright with spring greens and yellows, this attractive book introduces pigs through simple sentences and many colorful pictures. Beginning with the basic vocabulary (sow, boar, piglet), and breeds (Chester White, Berkshire, Gloucester Old Spot), Gibbons introduces children to the history of pigs, the reasons they were bred from wild boars, and their physical characteristics and behavior. Along the way, the book dispels common myths about porkers. Smelly? No! Dirty? No! Sloppy? Not a chance! Read this book to a school class, and by the end, all the kids will be clamoring for pigs as pets. Gibbons' 100th book and one of her most satisfying. (Reviewed March 15, 1999)0823414418Carolyn Phelan
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by School Library Journal Review
PreS-Gr 3-Gibbons's nonfiction picture books are brought to life complete with sound effects in these charming read-alongs. Each book focuses on one animal, with detailed descriptions of habitats, food, and life cycles along with definitions and occasional pronunciations of terms associated with the animals. Along with this abundance of information, there are colorful illustrations to accompany the text. Employing a different narrator for each title adds variety. During Polar Bears, for example, narrator Dion Graham leaves time for the listener to look at a map. The narrators also read all the captions for the pictures, which can become tedious on some pages, but the occasional background music adds to the atmosphere. These will be a welcome addition to any library collection.-Elizabeth Elsbree, Krug Elementary School, Aurora, IL (c) Copyright 2014. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Horn Book Review
Gibbons provides basic information about pigs' intelligence, behavior, physical attributes, and life cycle, dispelling some familiar misconceptions. She also lists common breeds and explores the typical uses of domestic pigs, from keeping them as pets or showing them at a county fair, to raising them for butchering or tanning. Labeled, multipaneled watercolor illustrations accentuate the straightforward text. From HORN BOOK Fall 1999, (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
Gibbons's 100th book is devoted to presenting swine in a positive light; she quickly demystifies the stereotypes that cast pigs as smelly, dirty, greedy, and dull. Descended and domesticated from the wild boar, pigs come in hundreds of varieties, colors, shapes, and sizes; in simple language, the book outlines their characteristics, breeds, intelligence, communication, habits, and uses. The author distinguishes the various terms'hog, swine, gilt, sow, boar'while also explaining the act of wallowing in mud. The bulk of the text is characteristically factual, but Gibbons allows herself an opinion or two: ``They are cute and lovable with their curly tails, their flat pink snouts and their noisy squeals and grunts.'' Pen-and-watercolor drawings show sprightly pigs and a plethora of pink-cheeked children in tranquil farm scenes. (Picture book/nonfiction. 4-8)
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
