Kids Book Reviewss

Kids Book Review – Saving Emma the Pig by John Chester

SAVING EMMA THE PIG
(The Biggest Little Farm)
Written by John Chester
Illustrated by Jennifer L. Meyer
(Feiwel & Friends; $17.99, Ages 4-8)

 

saving emma the pig book cover

 

Last month I had the good fortune to see the delightful documentary, “The Biggest Little Farm” and I’m not kidding when I say my husband thought I’d immediately head home to don overalls and work boots after the film had ended. Yes, I was that enthused but I’d also like to add that you don’t have to have seen the film to appreciate this farm story or the real life characters in Saving Emma the Pig reviewed here today.

Saving Emma the Pig, an utterly adorable 40-page nonfiction picture book just recently released, is going to win fans and perhaps even inspire future farmers and vets once in the hands of young readers. “Based on the award-winning film” by documentary filmmaker John Chester about bringing Apricot Lane Farms to life in Moorpark, California, Saving Emma the Pig is the first in a new series of children’s books. Each book, narrated by Chester, will capture a unique and engaging tale of an Apricot Lane Farms animal and “the special people who care for them.”

 

saving emma the pig interior spread 1
Interior illustration from Saving Emma the Pig: The Biggest Little Farm written by John Chester and illustrated by Jennifer L. Meyer, Feiwel & Friends © 2019.

 

Chester’s debut story recounts the true events about a particularly personable and apple-loving pig named Emma. Not just a new arrival at the farm, Emma also happens to be pregnant, and ill. Chester is determined to get her well again so she can properly care for her piglets. The premise here is quite simple yet also powerful, selflessly give love and devotion and it’ll come back to you tenfold. And that’s exactly what Chester, his wife Molly and his team set out to do.

Everyone expects Emma will have a fairly normal sized litter but when she goes into labor, the piglets keep coming. It doesn’t even stop at a dozen. Nope, seventeen piglets are born, close to a record number and quite a feat for a sickly swine. But the poor hog isn’t producing milk so the newborns move into Chester’s “teeny-tiny” farmhouse where they can be looked after while hopefully Emma recovers. There’s just one problem and it’s rather a big one. Emma has no appetite and in order to get better she must eat.

 

saving emma the pig int illustration 2
Interior illustration from Saving Emma the Pig: The Biggest Little Farm written by John Chester and illustrated by Jennifer L. Meyer, Feiwel & Friends © 2019.

 

Perhaps offering Emma apples is the way to get her back onto her feet. When this solution doesn’t work and Chester is at his wit’s end, there’s just one last thing to do to save Emma, bring back the piglets. Clearly they were missing their mama and she was missing them because, once reunited, Emma’s health and spirit improve. Together again, Emma and her piglets thrive with the piglets eventually growing up and moving into their own pasture.

It’s here both in art and text that Chester introduces another farm animal, Greasy the rooster, who bonds with Emma. This unlikely and funny friendship is setting the stage for what is sure to be the next book in the series. Meanwhile, John and Molly figure if Emma can handle seventeen little ones, surely they can “raise one of our own,” and an addition to the Chester family is also depicted.

 

saving emma the pig int illustration 3
Interior illustration from Saving Emma the Pig: The Biggest Little Farm written by John Chester and illustrated by Jennifer L. Meyer, Feiwel & Friends © 2019.

 

Artist Jennifer L. Meyer’s illustrations are so good that I cannot picture anyone else’s working as well. There’s a warmth that emanates from every page and brings Chester’s charming narrative to life. In the second spread we even spot Greasy taking up much of the left hand page as he watches Emma from a distance following her arrival. I also like that she’s added bees in her artwork. Another spread, with the piglets splashing, burping and slurping in the Chester home, shows Molly and John just outside a window wondering how they will cope with the litter and worrying if Emma will recover. An author’s note on the last two pages details the origin of Apricot Lane Farms, tells a bit more on Emma who now weighs in at seven hundred pounds and includes acknowledgments as well.

Bring the Chester family and the animals of Apricot Lane Farms into your life today. Share the Biggest Little Farm stories with your family to enter the wonderful world of bio dynamic farming where humans and nature are interconnected, helping us to learn about more about ourselves and the world around us.

• Reviewed by Ronna Mandel

Read more at the links below:

John Chester

Jennifer L. Meyer

 

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Kids Book Review – There Was An Old Gator Who Swallowed a Moth

THERE WAS AN OLD GATOR WHO SWALLOWED A MOTH
Written by B. J. Lee
Illustrated by David Opie
(Pelican Publishing; $16.99, Ages 0-5)

 

There Was an Old Gator Who Swallowed a Moth book cover art

 

You know that fab feeling you get when you hear a good joke and notice the corners of your mouth pushing out a huge smile? Well that’s also the feeling you and your children will get when reading B. J. Lee’s boisterous new book, There Was An Old Gator Who Swallowed a Moth with illustrations by David Opie. Yes, all it takes is one hungry alligator to get the action going in this Florida-animals-themed variation of the beloved cumulative rhyme There Was an Old Woman Who Swallowed a Fly and reminiscent of kidlit fave, A Fly Went By.

Soaking up the sun and minding his own business, the titular gator finds a winged visitor has landed on his snout. You can guess what happens but still be teased to read on.

“There was an old gator who swallowed a moth.
I don’t know why he swallowed the moth.
It made him cough.”

 

int illustration from There Was an Old Gator Who Swallowed a Moth
Interior illustration from There Was an Old Gator Who Swallowed a Moth written by B. J. Lee and illustrated by David Opie, Pelican Publishing ©2019.

 

int art of pelican from There Was an Old Gator Who Swallowed a Moth
Interior illustration from There Was an Old Gator Who Swallowed a Moth written by B. J. Lee and illustrated by David Opie, Pelican Publishing ©2019.

 

Gator then goes on to swallow a crab (I mean it did give him a jab!) And the slew of Sunshine State creatures eventually eaten also includes an eel, a ray, a pelican (see above), a panther, and a manatee. Opie’s illustration of ALL the animals squished inside gator’s stomach is spot on and one of my faves, but the one above where there’s still some room gives you a good idea of the vibe going on. While reading the book, be sure to take note of the expressions and body language depicting how no one wants to be anywhere near crab’s pinching claws.

 

int illustration from There Was An Old Gator Who Swallowed a Moth
Interior illustration from There Was an Old Gator Who Swallowed a Moth written by B. J. Lee and illustrated by David Opie, Pelican Publishing ©2019.

 

You may think that when the gator swallows the shark his tummy will be full, but no, he and Lee don’t stop there and that’s exactly why the (belly) laughs will linger with every page turn. What a humorous way to learn about survival of the fittest in a Florida setting!

 

interior illustr from There Was an Old Gator Who Swallowed a Moth
Interior illustration from There Was an Old Gator Who Swallowed a Moth written by B. J. Lee and illustrated by David Opie, Pelican Publishing ©2019.

 

This guy’s just greedy enough and silly enough to gulp down the entire lagoon which pushes him beyond capacity if you get my drift. In a series of hysterical illustrations that work wonderfully together with Lee’s terrific tale, it’s conveyed how totally stunned and slightly repulsed the ejected animals are. And if the above artwork doesn’t hint at a whopping “Get ready! I’m about to go gator-wild!” I don’t know what will!

Share this fun story with anyone you know who loves a rip-roaring read aloud and watch the grins grow along with the gator’s gut.

  • Reviewed by Ronna Mandel

 

 

 

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