The Pig in the Spigot

Rating:
Summary: Phun Phonics!
Review: Great illustrations, a fun addition to a phonics-based curriculum! I really enjoy reading this with my grandchildren. Some of the words will probably be new for many children... a good thing!

Rating:
Summary: For those who love light wordplay
Review: I really like these little poems -- and the OPPOSITES books by Wilbur, too (recently republished in a single volume) but the humor and style might not be appreciated by all kids. I don't think is aimed at kids just learning how to read, it's more of an introduction to light poetry and wordplay.

I have to add I just don't like the J. Otto Seibold illustrations much (well, the grateful little pig rescued from the spigot is cute) -- I have some friends who love the Mr. Lunch series and I never really got it, they just seem cluttered and ugly to me. But Richard Wilbur is great!

My 8 year old son likes these poems, too, though perhaps not as much as I do -- on the other hand, he doesn't seem to find the illustrations as ugly as I do, either, so we may balance each other out.

We spent some time after reading the book trying to think of similar word combinations -- we might even write our own poems about them. Any book that gets me playing word games with Morris gets 5 stars! (Not that it's hard to get him to play, it's just so much fun to do it!)

Incidentally, the opposite books are great for this, too!

Rating:
Summary: Zany illustrations accompanying whimsical poems
Review: Siebold's zany illustrations accompany whimsical poems by Wilbur which combine plays on words with instructions about language. Kids receive some fun lessons on word usage along with some fun images representing the best of fantasy.