THIS LITTLE PIG NAMED CURLY

This Little Pig Named Curly is a double deceiver: the runt that follows farmer Pat around grows into a pet of mammoth devotion; the book that begins as a toddler's tour of the barnyard becomes a sly look at an odd couple and the consternation they cause. The piglet trailing Pal is simply appealing; the fun begins when his wallowing in the mud reminds Pat to take a bath (pipe clenched, in a tub in the grape arbor) and to clean Curly too (by scratching him with a stick). Curly, now full-size and formidable, doesn't forget: the man delivering fence posts is welcomed as another potential scratcher. But his finest moment comes when, ejected from the general store, he lies down in the road--the middle of the road. A hay wagon drives up, the horses shy, and the hay spills in a heap on Curly, who couldn't care less. The firmer does, demurs at a portly pig being kept as a pet, then has to laugh despite himself. So will kids it's laconic and unassuming and drawn to match: a new quirk in pig tales.