The Good Good Pig: The Extraordinary Life of Christopher Hogwood (Paperback)

~ (Author)
Key Phrases: cash market, good good pig, nose disk, Christopher Hogwood, New Hampshire, Pig Spa (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Montgomery's books on exotic wildlife (Journey of the Pink Dolphins, etc.) take her to the far corners of the world, but the story of her closest relationships with the animal kingdom plays out in her own New England backyard. When she adopts a sickly runt from a litter of pigs, naming him Christopher Hogwood after the symphony conductor, raising him for slaughter isn't an option: Montgomery's a vegetarian and her husband is Jewish. Refitting their barn to accommodate a (mostly) secure sty, they keep Christopher as a pet. As he swells to 750 pounds, he becomes a local celebrity, getting loose frequently enough that the local police officer knows to carry spare apples to lure him back home. The pig also bonds with Montgomery's neighbors, especially two children who come over to help feed him and rub his tummy. Montgomery's love for Christopher (and later for Tess, an adopted border collie) dominates the memoir's emotional space, but she's also demonstrably grateful for the friendships the pig sparks within her community. The humor with which she recounts Christopher's meticulous eating habits and love of digging up turf is sure to charm readers. (June)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From School Library Journal

Adult/High School–For writer and world traveler Montgomery, the grounding force of her New Hampshire home was a 750-pound pig. This book is not merely a chronicle of her love for and life with Christopher Hogwood, but also a testament to the lessons learned through her 14-year relationship with him. Usually preferring the company of animals to most people, Montgomery developed an extensive network of friends who were willing to cache and freeze their food scraps for the always grateful, bottomless pig. In turn, these friends witnessed an enjoyment of life's bounty as only a pig can experience–with utter abandon. Montgomery's delightful anecdotes about Christopher's personality, neighborhood wanderings, and haute skin care à la Pig Spa are entwined with biographical details about her family life and fascinating animal-research projects. Christopher was undoubtedly Montgomery's muse for this introspective account of personal growth and her underlying mantra of caring for all the Earth's creatures. He also helped her weather the pain of intractable parents who would not accept their Jewish son-in-law. Like Montgomery's earlier books, this title blends facts about animal behavior, natural history, geography, and culture with myths, legends, and a large helping of adventure. The color photographs of Christopher from runt to virtual behemoth are an added attraction. More importantly, the author's engaging writing style will captivate even the most uninspired teen readers.–Claudia C. Holland, Chantilly Regional Library, Fairfax County, VA
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 272 pages
• Publisher: Ballantine Books (April 17, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0345496094
• ISBN-13: 978-0345496096
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.1 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (67 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #78,880 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

32 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A good good story, June 3, 2006

By	Eileen Rieback (Coral Springs, FL USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This review is from: The Good Good Pig: The Extraordinary Life of Christopher Hogwood (Hardcover)

When author Sy Montgomery brought home the sickliest runt of the pig litter as a pet, she never imagined how much he would grow and enrich the lives of all those who came in contact with him. This amazing pig not only thrived, but he reached 750 pounds of exuberance and free spirit. Christopher Hogwood was not just sociable and amusing, but he was also a catalyst for humans around him to help and support each other. In fact, the book is as much about the people who came in contact with Christopher as it is about the pig himself.

Montgomery, who has written many publications on animal life around the world, brings her deep love and respect for all animals to this book. She includes descriptions of some of the places she has been and the amazing creatures she has studied. She treats Christopher with the same sense of wonder as she had for the legendary pink dolphins of Brazil and the man-killing tigers of India. She makes Christopher's gluttony a delight to imagine. She makes the reader chuckle at his opinionated personality and his enjoyment of being pampered at "pig spa."

This memoir is funny, enlightening, and touching. If you loved the classic children's story "Charlotte's Web," you'll adore "The Good Good Pig." As Charlotte would have said, Christopher is some pig!

Eileen Rieback

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A fun, heart-warming book, June 7, 2006

By	Bookreporter.com (New York, New York) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Good Good Pig: The Extraordinary Life of Christopher Hogwood (Hardcover)

One person in Christopher Hogwood's community was able to get a check cashed on the strength of being a friend of the well-known pig. Christopher was a write-in candidate for local elective office, and his death was mourned not only by his slop-bearers but by friends around the world.

Sy Montgomery, a writer usually more concerned with insects and apes and occasional children (JOURNEY OF THE PINK DOLPHINS), has gifted those of us who did not know Christopher with the amusing, remarkable, poignant and revelatory biography of a pig who started life small and influenced the world around him in a big way.

We know long before Montgomery tells us that Christopher is her sort of therapy-pig, a portal of entry into the world of magic and faith that children inhabit. Christopher was an orphan, and she and her husband Howard, also a writer, took time out of their busy, introverted lives in a cherished farmhouse in New Hampshire to spoil the "good good pig." Even a simple thing like watching him eat became a special pastime for Sy and her neighbors: "Pigs are quite literally made for eating --- they were bred to eat and get fat fast...grunting, slurping and snorting with delight, Christopher ate with the enthusiasm of a gourmand and the grace of an athlete." Even the gourmet bistro sent him leftovers.

When two young girls, Kate and Jane, moved in near the pig parlor, they fell in love with their porcine neighbor and started bringing him food. One of them took to communing with the pig when she felt blue. Together with Sy, they initiated "Pig Spa" in place of just plain old tummy-rubbing. They untangled his tail, bathed him and polished his hooves with cocoa butter. "But the truth is, while the brushing, bathing, tail-braiding and nipple stroking delighted Christopher Hogwood, even more it restored the humans who touched him."

Christopher grew large --- topping 700 pounds from having been a runt with a tenuous hold on early life --- and smart, able to unlock complicated hasps and having a mind to roam. The local policeman took to carrying apples in his car to lure the mammoth pet back home, and the locals got used to occasional random visits from Sy's favorite foster child. Christopher inspired trust and was beloved by children, some of whom proclaimed him better than a horse. He was often filmed and became a Christmas card for Sy and Howard, his raffish photos a reward to his many sloppers, combers and therapy clients.

There is nothing about this book to slow down the enthusiastic reader or bore the knowledgeable one --- both will race through to its natural conclusion with a tear here, a giggle there, a sigh of species empathy along the way. Though I would not be able to consider having a hog instead of a dog in my house, I admire Sy for taking Christopher in, and him for being such a gracious recipient of her fond affections. It was an adoption made in hog heaven.

--- Reviewed by Barbara Bamberger Scott

20 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Don't miss this one, May 31, 2006

By	happy reader "d/mil" (Harrison, AR USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Good Good Pig: The Extraordinary Life of Christopher Hogwood (Hardcover)

The Good Good Pig is a fun ride from the opening sentence till the last page. It will go fast because you just keep on wanting to know what Chris will do next or who will fall in love with him...ultimately the whole town. Actually while enjoying the story, I learned some things I'll probably never need to know about pig farming...even some history of pigs but who can tell what knowledge ..someday..might really come in handy. Enjoy!!