Pigs to the Rescue: A Picture Book

by John Himmelman (Author) John Himmelman (Illustrator)

Reading Level: K − 1st Grade

Farmer Greenstalk and his family have the darnedest luck. Broken-down tractors, kites stuck in trees--they're always having problems! It's a good thing they have such helpful farm animals on hand.

This time around, the pigs want to pitch in, and boy, do they ever! The Greenstalks soon find, though, that life might just be a little easier without their help...

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Publishers Weekly

Starred Review
In this follow-up to "Chickens to the Rescue", this time it's the pigs who help the Greenstalk family with a week's worth of problems. Wearing swimsuits and expressions of fierce determination, they water Mrs. Greenstalk's flowers (a kiddie pool is involved). When the rooster has a sore throat, they snort and squeal with abandon, and they inadvertently tear Jeffrey's treed kite to pieces following a particularly acrobatic rescue. In a twist ending, the Greenstalks find that a new crew of animals has caught the rescue bug. It's a one-joke book, yes, but Himmelman's expressively comedic illustrations keep it as funny as ever. Ages 48. "(May.)" Copyright 2010 Publishers Weekly Used with permission.

School Library Journal

PreS-Gr 2During a week of minor mishaps at the Greenstalk farm, the pigs pick up where "Chickens to the Rescue" (Holt, 2006) left off. The porkers solve each problem with great aplomb. From tilling the field to substituting for the ailing rooster, they create a bit of chaos with each solution. When Sunday rolls around and the cat spills her milk, the Greenstalks hold their breath that the pigs won't come to the rescue. All seems safe and quiet, until readers turn to the last page, where the cows are rushing in with bottles and pans and dishes of milk. Watercolor cartoons extend the humor and complete the story. The well-balanced compositions and excellent use of white space bring an explosion of action, and details provide additional humor. Alone or in groups, preschoolers in particular will enjoy this barnyard comedy."Carolyn Janssen, Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County, OH" Copyright 2010 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Review quotes

"Himmelman's expressively comedic illustrations keep it as funny as ever." —Publishers Weekly, Starred Review

"Written with a minimum of fuss and illustrated with comic delight, this picture book from the To the Rescue series offers plenty of laughs for the read-aloud crowd." —Booklist

John Himmelman
John Himmelman (Tudley Didn't Know) has written and/or illustrated over 60 children's books since 1981. His award-winning book -Pipaluk and the Whales- (published by National Geographic) is based on the true story of how far people will go to save their wild neighbors. John's -Nature Upclose- series of 13 different books (published by Children's Press, a division of Scholastic) includes such titles as: A Monarch Butterfly's Life, A Pillbug's Life, A Luna Moth's Life, and A Woodfrog's, Life. He based his Animal Rescue Club (Harper Collins) beginning reader book on a group of real children who rescued orphaned and injured wildlife. John's first book for adults, Discovering Moths, was recently published by Downeast Books. Most of John's book stem from his obvious passion for animals and nature. When John isn't busy writing or illustrating his books, he is involved with the CT Butterfly Association, the Killingworth Land Conservation Trust, leads nature walks and gives natural history lectures throughout the country. He works with schools by offering special science observation programs, and teaches courses on children's book writing. As if he isn't busy enough, John has two children (one in college and one in high school) and a working wife (high school art teacher) with a busy life of her own. John says he has never lost his love of reading and ends each day curled up in bed with a good book! Visit John's Website: http: //jch.homestead.com/home.html
Classification
Fiction
ISBN-13
9780805086836
Lexile Measure
430
Guided Reading Level
G
Publisher
Henry Holt & Company
Publication date
April 20, 2010
Series
-
BISAC categories
JUV019000 - Juvenile Fiction | Humorous Stories
JUV002200 - Juvenile Fiction | Animals | Pigs
Library of Congress categories
Pigs
Farm life

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