Customer Reviews

The Pig in the Spigot

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

If you are a fan of J. Otto Seibold and Vivian Walsh you need this book now! Don't waste another minute without it. The illustrations have outdone themselves! Amazing and candy-like you will want to lick the pages. Once you've stopped looking at the brillant illustrations and begin to read the poetry you're in another world. The poetry is a joy to read, enhanced and brought to life by the whimsical characters. You may never put the book down. I have given this book to all my friends and collegues. Not just for kids! Adult childrens will love and creative types of all ages will be inspired!

Richard Wilbur and J. Otto Seibold have come together and collaborated on a very special, one-of-a-kind book of poetry. As it says on the book jacket flap, "Richard Wilbur's been playing with his words again!" Where else will you find a sob in disobey, a bug in a bugle or an ant in the pantry? These unique poems, containing words within words are silly, witty and most of all, fun to read. Mr Seibold's busy, expressive illustrations compliment each poem with bright colors and humor and will keep all readers entranced with his attention to detail. The perfect gift for kids 3 to 93, The Pig in the Spigot is a charming, amusing collection the whole family will enjoy.

This book is solid gold...my kids told me so. The words and the pictures in this book pass-on the elusive lightbulb of inspiration. You can get a contact genius just by reading, "Pig in the Spigot." And that feels good.

Parents and publishers know poetry is important for kids, but they defeat that idea with picture books that are portentous or boring. Kids end-up wary of the precious Poem. Pig in Spigot is neither, rather, delicious.

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!

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!

Jotto did the illustrations for this but the poetry is by Richard Wilbur. I find some of the poetry uneven, but I like it. Some of the poems are right on the mark.

I think the illustrations are genius, but I am a huge jotto fan and don't know how one could think otherwise.

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.

I loved this book! I used it at the end of the year with my HA third graders. I think it is more appropriate for 4th or 5th graders. Children need to have some knowledge of spelling to get the jokes. However, I would caution you that there is one page that just really isn't appropriate for a classroom, but that is easily skipped.

I'm a huge fan of J Otto and feel his gift for illustration and sense of color are unparalleled. I am unfortunately constantly disappointed in the writing that goes into his books. Often the writing is flat and clumsy and unfortunately this book is no exception. If you are a fan of J. Otto buy this book you will enjoy it for just the illustrations. If you are looking for a similar book that has a whimsical quality throughout the text and the illustrations buy Calif Brown's "Polkabats and Octopus Slacks"

This book was not enjoyed by either of my children. It is so ridiculous that children in the age range for whom its written think its stupid, and the young ones who tolerate witless nonsense don't understand the meaning of the words. I have an eleven year old and a four year old, both of which were bored by the second page. The word search within words is a great concept, but I expected there to be some sense about it, so the kids could be entertained AND challenged by the text. I am very disappointed.