Piggy

by Trevor Lai

Bloomsbury 

978-1-68119-065-5

32 pp.

Ages 0-5

December 2016

Trevor Lai, founder of Up Studios, the very trendy Asian studio that created the BOOMi Camera mobile app, may be all over the internet, photographed with celebrities and promoting his studio's animations and media products, but Piggy, the title character of his first picture book, must be his alter ego, because he's just a demure little guy who loves to read and wants to make a friend.

From Piggy by Trevor Lai

Piggy, the red-spectacled boy-pig, was always too busy reading to make friends until he reaches his last book and decides to save it and try something new.  After a valiant effort at flying a kite–as instructed by a book, of course–Piggy decides to step outside of his comfort zone and make friends with a similarly book-loving girl-cat. But no matter what impressive endeavours he undertakes like blowing giant bubbles, or flying a plane, or sending flowers her way, she does not notice and never takes her nose out of her book.  It's only when he makes a small but sincere gesture at sharing his last book with her that Piggy learns it's Kate's eyesight that has stopped her from noticing his gestures.  With another large pair of red eyeglasses, Piggy helps Kate read the written words better and see the glorious friendship to be had with him.

From Piggy by Trevor Lai

Piggy has all the right messages about reading, sharing, compassion, friendship and perseverance, and Trevor Lai embeds them in a sweet, sweet story with a pig and a cat that very young children will adore.  The illustrations are bright in colour and whimsical in line, shape and size (the eyeglasses are especially outrageous).  It has a Porky Pig meets Hello Kitty vibe to the story but without the silliness or excess that might have handicapped the story.  The lightness of the tone and artwork enriches the story to become one of wholesomeness not saccharinity, sure to please both adults reading Piggy and little ones listening to it.  Piggy may make friends with Kate but he’ll become a character of affection for many more. (And there's an upcoming book, Piggy in Love, that we can look forward to reading too.)

Sky Pig

Written by Jan L. Coates

Illustrated by Suzanne Del Rizzo

Pajama Press

978-1-927485-98-9

32 pp.

Ages 4–7

April 2016

Ollie is a little pig with a big dream and, though he doesn’t speak (he is after all a pig and pigs can’t talk), his friend, Jack, a boy with a big heart and a bigger imagination, tries to help Ollie achieve his dream.

Ollie from Sky Pig by Jan L. Coates,

 illus. by Suzanne Del Rizzo

First Jack fastens leafy branches onto Ollie’s back and they climb to the top of a very high hill. Even though a fast run and a jump has Ollie believing that he’s flying, an “Oooooomph!” and a “Plop!” make it evident he did not.  Having Jack create a kite with some garden stakes, twine, a feed sack and scraps of fabric is Ollie’s next plan to become airborne.  A couple of oinks and another “Oooooomph!” and “Plop!” again foretell the futility of their endeavour. Finally, taking their cues from the geese, chickens and other birds, Jack fashions a set of wings for Ollie. Made from an assortment of papers, including maps and wrapping paper featuring airborne creatures, and miscellaneous gears and leather, Ollie takes to the sky like a kind of steampunk flyer.  Alas, that flight ends similarly.  Even a Mary Poppins-like contraption of umbrellas is unsuccessful.

It’s only when the two make use of an already-tried-and-true flying machine that Ollie is able to stay aloft and experience the joys of floating in the sky, even if only for a short time and at a cost of $5.

Dreamers can dream but, with a friend like Jack, Ollie’s dream that a pig could fly comes true.  It takes a little determination, a lot of imagination and being in the right place at the right time but Ollie’s dream, courtesy of Jack’s friendship and piggy bank, becomes a reality.  Jan L. Coates’ story is uplifting like much of her previous work including A Hare in the Elephant’s Trunk (Red Deer Press, 2010), The Power of Harmony (Red Deer Press, 2013), and The King of Keji (Nimbus, 2015), and even more so with Suzanne Del Rizzo’s spectacular art, previously enjoyed in Skink on the Brink (Fitzhenry & Whiteside, 2013) and Gerbil, Uncurled (Fitzhenry & Whiteside, 2015).  The doughy art (plasticine with polymer clay) with mixed media collage features adds the textures and colour to elevate the story even higher.  Beyond the cuteness of Ollie and Jack is a rich landscape of green pastures and trees, chickens and groundhogs, and flowers and dandelion fluff and sweet details of a chicken protecting her egg in a life-vest or basket and thwarting a mouse that tries to get too close.   There’s so much more to Sky Pig than making a pig fly and young readers will love going along for the ride.

From Sky Pig by Jan L. Coates, illus. by Suzanne Del Rizzo

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There will be two great opportunities to check out Sky Pig with author or illustrator.

Illustrator Suzanne Del Rizzo will be participating in the I Art Books Exhibit and Sale of Children's Book Illustration on April 30, 2016 at Blue Heron Books in Uxbridge, ON. Details here.

Author Jan L. Coates will be launching Sky Pig on May 7, 2016 at The Box of Delights Bookshop in Wolfville, NS. Details here.

Dojo Daytrip

by Chris Tougas

Owlkids Books

978-1-77147-142-8

32 pp.

Ages 3-7

September 2015

They may be ninjas but they are still children:  boisterous, inquisitive, energetic and rowdy.  And a field trip with Master to a farm doesn't do anything but fuel their fires!  Remember Chris Tougas' six little ninjas from Dojo Daycare (Owlkids Books, 2014)?  Well, they're back and as effervescent as a newly opened pop bottle.

And Master must feel the same way as the six ninjas–never named but each unique and recognizable by hair or lack thereof–explode off the bus and begin to explore and cause ninja mayhem! But, it's Master who continues to find himself in buckets of awkwardness: falling in the pigs' trough, or running from a bull, or spooking a horse.  The little ninjas have just not been paying attention, distracted by the chicks, or other farmyard entities, and

It's a big barnyard disaster!
No one's there to save the Master.
The ninjas all forgot their creed:
Always help someone in need.

But after a few "Yikes!" and "Yee-ow!" moments, the ninjas realize the Master needs help and they jump in to make things right.  It's a full day of activities and activity and rhyming and word play, and it's not surprising that the little ones seem tired on the road home, though a taurine stowaway suggests more mayhem is in their future.

Dojo Daytrip is a fun romp at the farm with Chris Tougas' agile ninjas and their adult wrangler, reminiscent of many school field trips with their "if something can do wrong, it will" moments.  But Chris Tougas twists that story line by having the Master at the heart of the craziness and allowing the little ninjas to solve the problems and go beyond the call of duty.  The Master may be harping on the little ones forgetting their creed but they're just too busy having fun.  Chris Tougas' words are light and rhythmic and work so well with his bold characters and sparse settings.  It's a fast read, perfect for a read-aloud before a school trip, but take the time to notice all the details like the red scarf that riles the bull, or the one farting ninja, or the little chicks that wave good-bye, or the ninja teddy-bear.  There's a richness of details and facial expressions and such that add so much to the simple story of helping out those in need that Dojo Daytrip will be a fun keeper to use in the classroom for field trip prep, for rhyming exemplars and for a pastural past-time without getting on a bus.

Piggy Bunny

by Rachel Vail

Illustrated by Jeremy Tankard

Feiwel and Friends (Macmillan Imprint)

Distributed in Canada by Raincoast Books

978-0-312-64988-3

32 pp.

Ages 5-8

2012

Liam is a well-loved piglet in a family of pigs who all know exactly what they are: pigs.  But, Liam aspires to be the Easter Bunny.  He practises hopping, eating salad and delivering Easter eggs, and he seems to be improving.

But, as much as his siblings and parents tell him that he's perfect and has all the attributes of a great pig, Liam can't see himself as anything but a springtime hare.  Luckily, his grandparents have the imagination and internet skills to help him manifest the Easter Bunny within.

Canadian illustrator Jeremy Tankard's characters are so distinct that, even when they are the basis for a picture book by an American author, Rachel Vail, and published in the U.S. (thankfully distributed in Canada by Raincoast Books), they define the book.

Children will recognize Piggy Bunny as a a close relation to the assorted animals in Grumpy Bird (Scholastic, 2007) and Boo Hoo Bird (Scholastic, 2009), such as Raccoon, Bird, and Beaver  displayed above.  Piggy Bunny comes from a patent line of strongly outlined creatures, heavily inked to delineate their simple forms, just as with Liam and the cat below.

The story is straightforward, the illustrations seemingly effortless, and the bold colours alluring in their use in the pages' designs.  The coupling of text that champions individuality with artwork that is itself unique will help little ones accept the concept of being oneself and enjoying the esteem that comes with it.

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On the CanLit for LittleCanadians Book Trailers, I've posted MacmillanChildrens upload to YouTube of Jeremy Tankard illustrating Piggy Bunny.  Check it out here.