Puppies and Piggies

by Cynthia Rylant, Ivan Bates (Illustrator)

Overview

Join a sneaky puppy for a joyous barnyard jaunt, and meet the many adorable babies spring has brought to a farm. There are ponies and puppies, piggies and duckies. And whether it's munching or snoozing, hiding or playing, they're all busy doing the things they love best. 

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780547544076
Publisher:	HarperCollins Publishers
Publication date:	03/01/2008
Sold by:	HARPERCOLLINS
Format:	eBook
Pages:	32
File size:	13 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.
Age Range:	3 - 5 Years

About the Author

CYNTHIA RYLANT is the author of more than a hundred books for young people, and her novel Missing May received the Newbery Medal. She lives in Lake Oswego, Oregon.

IVAN BATES is the illustrator of Just You and Me and The Dark at the Top of the Stairs by Sam McBratney. He lives in England.

 

Editorial Reviews

A farmyard's worth of animals smile their way through this rhyming poem cum bedtime book about what makes each one of them happy. Rylant (Baby Face, reviewed above) starts off with brisk, chirpy lines: "Kitty loves a garden/ Kitty loves a rose./ Kitty loves to walk up high/ On her kitty toes." Working in watercolors and wax crayons, in panels and vignettes, Bates (Farmer Dale's Red Pickup Truck) animates the verse with an unapologetically anthropomorphized cast of creatures: his Bunny lounges against a gardener's workbasket as it snacks on lettuce leaves; his Mousey clasps pretty leaves in its paws as it gazes, enthralled, at a ladybug overhead. It's almost as if a particularly cute stuffed-animal collection had been the models. The tempo slows down a little as the woman seen gardening earlier reappears, now indoors and holding a smiling baby: "Baby loves his mama, who will/ Kiss his sleepy head." By the last page, the baby sleeps ensconced in his crib, with all the beaming animals arrayed in the window and along the sill: Chickie on Piggy's head, Mousey next to Kitty and so forth. A good choice for those who like their bedtime books served sunny-side-up. Ages 3-5. (Mar.)

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Publishers Weekly

PreS- "Puppy loves the farmyard,/Puppy loves the rain," but it has just stopped falling, and all the animals on the farm have begun to enjoy the day, too. "Pony loves to stretch her legs/In the summer sun." An Easter-egg palette of pastels on a pale yellow background effectively renders the creatures more like nursery toys than farm animals. On the final spread, they peer through Baby's bedroom window as he sleeps, almost as if they have taken on the role of their stuffed equivalents. Unfortunately, the theme of discovering joy in life's small pleasures is undermined by forced rhymes and an overall syrupy tone, exacerbated by the persistent use of diminutive titles (e.g., "Piggy," "Mousey," etc.). And while phrases such as "Happy little lovey-doveys" may adequately soothe young children, eye-rolling is a possible side effect for adults who are sharing the book.-Madeline Walton-Hadlock, San Jose Public Library, CA

School Library Journal

A bevy of farm creatures enjoy a few of their favorite things in this barnyard charmer. Puppy loves playing in the rain and pressing his nose against the windowpane while Kitty loves a rose and walking on her toes. Bunny loves snacking on peas and hiding in apple trees. Piggy loves his slop and rolling around to flop. All Chicky needs are her seeds. Mousey loves to hide inside a dark hole. Goosey loves walking and talking. Pony loves running in the summer sun. And Baby loves bed and Mama who kisses him on his sleepy head. Told in reassuring rhyme, the simple upbeat text showcases happy animals doing what comes naturally while Bates's idyllic watercolor and crayon illustrations present a bucolic barnyard teeming with contented critters. Puppy plays in a puddle; Kitty struts on a wall; Bunny munches pea pods; Piggy rolls in the straw; Chicky pecks; Mousey wiggles; Goosey honks; Pony stretches; and Baby sleeps safely. Comforting and carefree fare for tiny tots. (Picture book. 3-5)

Kirkus Reviews