Customer Reviews

Freddy and the Ignormus (Freddy Books)

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Published between 1927 and 1958, the 26 books in the "Freddy the Pig" series are perhaps the most consistently well written children's book series of the 20th century. By turns, Freddy is a detective, a poet, a pilot, a "Pied Piper," a football player--you get the idea. His barnyard friends are fully fleshed and memorable. Ignormus is one of the best Freddys and really keeps kids reading. Freddy has to put on his detective hat and find out who is terrorizing the animals in the "big woods"--and why. If you have kids from 5 to 14, they'll love these books. Brooks was apparently the first children's writer to write in the vernacular and use "slang" -- that dreaded word! -- and he's just as funny today as he ever was. ALSO: If you read the books and love 'em, find the Friends of Freddy website and chatroom - we'd love to meet you. AND we're having a convention in October in upstate New York (the big woods) that you can attend. But most important --read the books, especially to your kids. Connie Arnold, Secretary-Treasurer, Friends of Freddy, 5A Laurel Hill Road, Greenbelt, MD 20770. We're a nonprofit literary club devoted to the preservation and perpetuation of the writings of Walter R. Brooks (who also wrote the Mr. Ed short stories on which the famous TV series was based).

Funny, more tightly plotted than usual, maybe the all around best Freddy title.
When I was a kid, I started reading "Flying Saucer Plans," found it not particularly compelling, and forgot about Freddy for many years.
Recently, I was casting about for something to read to my six year old son, who doesn't like much of anything except Esther Averill's "Cat Club" books (and we'd read all of those we could find), and decided to try "Florida," and we've been reading Freddy non-stop ever since.
I'm growing very fond of Brooks' gentle, character driven, sometimes satirical humor. I do have a few problems with the books. Brooks' relentless use of "pretty" as an all-purpose intensifier drives me up a wall, and if some editor had only crossed out "pretty" on sight I'd probably enjoy the books about twice as much (I drop "pretty" when reading aloud). I also wouldn't mind if he used "were" instead of "was" for the subjunctive occasionally. And the less of Freddy's poetry we get, the better.
But "Florida," "Detective," "Wiggins for President" (his best title, too bad it had to be changed), and "Ignormus" are certainly classics, and all the ones we've read have had their moments. I'm happy they're back and that I'm finally reading them. Eventually I'll work my way back up to those 50s sci-fi Freddies and see if I like 'em any better...
Never trust a man who would steal from a rhinoceros,
Edward

I consider this the best book in my all-time favorite children's book series. It has humor, wonderful characters, a tight plot, and even a hint of symbolism worthy of another American classic, Moby Dick.

This is another one of the Freddy books written after Walter R. Brooks began to hit his stride as a writer. Here, the Bean farm is being terrorized by the minions of a creature, called the Ignormus, who lives in the Big Woods. As usual, lots of fun and excitement, and several excellent lessons, none of which are preached at the reader.

There is a lot of baffling clues in this story and Freddy doesn't know what to make of them. Worst of all, Mr. Bean and all of the other animals, except for Jinx the cat, believe that Freddy is a thief! Freddy must find out the truth to save his name. He is determined and proclaims that he would leave the farm and not come back until he has caught the real thief and nailed its hide to the barn!

I liked this book because it has large doses of 'animal' nature (as opposed to human nature) which makes it very funny. It also helps you to realize that many things you are afraid of are just a part of your imagination, so go ahead and do it afraid. I recommend the book!

These "Freddy" books are a tremendous advantage in that they speak to children and not down to them. Wonderfully written and carry a last vestige of traditional American standards for morality and values not seen in childrens books anymore. Was very happy to find so many of the series through Amazon.

A note before the review: the Freddy the Pig books were written during a time when authors of books for children shared the basic assumption that children should grow and expand their vocabularies, not have their ignorance validated. As a result, the language is neither simplified nor limited.

In Freddy and the Ignormous, there's something in the Big Woods that is terrifying all the animals on the Bean Farm. While no one has seen the Ignormous clearly, they have received notes from it that threaten dire consequences if they don't bring it food. Led by Freddy the Pig, who alone has the courage to enter the Big Woods to try to find out what the Ignormous is, the animals learn that the fear you face is never as great as the fear you won't.

I first read the Freddy the Pig books in the early 1950s. Over fifty years later, I can still enjoy them: they have stood the test of time.

I've read nearly all the Freddy books to my five-year-old son, and if I had to pick a best Freddy book, I think this would be the one. Not for its subject matter--we actually had to stop reading this when my son was four, because the Ignormus scared him--but for the interplay among the characters. It's not a children's book where all the animals get along wonderfully with each other like a '60s commune on laughing gas; it's a book where one animal can express annoyance about another, even if they're best friends. Eventually, however, like in all Freddy books, the animals also accept each other's strengths and imperfections--there are no spotless, faultless heroes or invincibly evil villians here.
Jinx the cat's sarcasm, Simon the rat's malevolence, Charles the rooster's profundity--all the characters are in top form, and are hilarious, if understated humor is your thing.
(Oh yes, Theodore the frog is in there too, to stick a pin in Freddy's occasional pretentiousness. Brilliant.)

Highly recomended for all ages,

Caleb A. Craig.