WILLA THE WONDERFUL
by Susan Milord & illustrated by Susan Milord
In the tradition of Kevin Henkes’s Lily and Ian Falconer’s Olivia comes Willa, a young pig who has planned her career path. When Mr. Lane asks his class to write reports on their favorite careers, Willa finds a tutu, cuts out lots of stars, makes a pair of wings, selects the perfect wand, and fills a sack with fairy dust. She goes to school the next morning ready for anything, but her day does not go as planned. Even her best friend Jenny thinks Willa’s fairy princess antics are a pain, and Willa ends the school day in the Thinking Chair. But Willa proves herself a hero by pulling Jenny’s brother Sherman from the path of an oncoming car. The next morning everyone joins in a “thank you” party for Willa, the truly wonderful. Milord, author of excellent cultural activity how-tos, makes a spirited and welcome picture-book debut. Willa’s obsession, dejection, and eventual triumph are nicely communicated. This new pig on the scene more closely resembles Holly Keller’s Geraldine than Falconer’s star pig, but the watercolor-and-ink illustrations are active and sweet. (Picture book. 4-8)