THE MUNCHING, MARCHING PIG BAND

Porcine paraders go on a binge in Lowles’ picture book.

The Munching, Marching Pig Band is a troupe that’s traveled the entire world. People line the streets to see these red-jacketed, parading pigs playing their instruments. There is one other thing that they do: They eat. A lot. (“The people like to feed them and the pigs do not refuse. Clever pigs, they play and eat, they have no time to lose.”) While Major keeps them stepping in time, the players multitask and consume all manner of cakes, jellies, scones, tarts, and more. They’ve sampled snacks from every part of the world on their tour, and not even the bounds of Earth can stop them from further gastric exploration. One day, the pigs eat so much that they float off into space, where they keep on eating and playing their instruments; in a confusing last-minute twist, the narrator explains that this is the origin of thunder and lightning. Like her debut picture book, The River of Cheese (2023), Lowles’ second outing packs a lot of classic whimsy into its busy, cartoon-like illustrations by Coelho, but the story stumbles in its pacing. It appears early on as if eating while playing instruments will be a problem, but the true conflict occurs very late in the story, and the hasty, stormy conclusion seems to come out of nowhere.

A quirky picture book that fails to deliver on a story level.