Customer Reviews

Victor, the Vegetarian: Saving Little Lambs

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4 star:		(1)
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Victor, The Vegetarian: Saving the Little Lambs is a simple story with an important message. Victor is a young boy who lives with his parents on their farm set amongst the woods. When
Victor overhears his father talk about killing the lambs on the farm so they can have lamb chops, Victor takes his lamb friends, Marigold and Buttercup, into the woods where they become lost.
When they are finally found, Victor's parents decide not to kill the lambs. Not only are the lambs saved, but Victor realizes that he doesn't want to eat any other animals either. "'What about all the meat we eat?' he asked his parents. 'I'd love all those animals if I knew them. I don't want to eat cows or pigs or chickens either!'" Victor has become a vegetarian!
Victor, The Vegetarian: Saving the Little Lambs will appeal to children and will make vegetarian
children feel good about their compassionate diet. –Reviewed by Glenn Perrett (...)

Victor reaches that moment in life when he realizes the origins of the food on his plate, and he's horrified by what he's learned. He shows compassion and his determination, that his family's lambs will not become lambchops. My elementary school students really enjoy this book and its companion tape. They often ask to rehear the story.

I am a vegetarian and I wanted to like this book, but it is lacking in many ways. The family in the story lives on a farm, yet the mother is always dressed better than June Clever. The family seems disfunctional in the 50's way...the illistrations are terrible. I wanted a good book about a vegetarian child, to read to my children, but this isn't it. There are too many loose ends when the book is over. Is the family going to be vegetarians, or just the little boy. The parents don't seem thoughtful or commited to doing so.

Radha Vignola's simple story clearly conveys the ethics of vegetarianism. Victor's heroism is inspiring and teaches children that their actions can make a difference. The illustrations are cute but as another reviewer mentioned reinforce gender stereotypes. Also, Victor's parents' ready acceptance of his decision to stop eating meat seems pretty unrealistic, especially given that their livelihood depends on raising animals for slaughter. Meat-eating kids may be disappointed to find that their parents offer more resistance. However, these drawbacks do not affect my 2 year old's enjoyment of the book in the least, and the message of becoming vegetarian for compassionate reasons shines through.