The Pig in the Spigot - Hardcover

Wilbur, Richard

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0152020195 ISBN 13: 9780152020194

Publisher: Harcourt Children's Books, 2000

Synopsis

A PIG in a spigot?
An AX in a taxi?
An ELF in a belfry?

It can mean only one thing. . . .
Richard Wilbur has been playing with his words again! Aided and abetted by illustrator J.otto Seibold, Richard Wilbur reveals that words must be used carefully--because you never know what you'll find in them!

About this title

About the Author

Richard Wilbur, a former poet laureate of the United States, has twice been awarded the Pulitzer Prize for poetry, among many honors. He lives in Cummington, Massachusetts, and Key West, Florida.

J.Otto Seibold has, with his wife, Vivian Walsh, created seven huugely popular books, including Olive, the Other Reindeer and Penguin Dreams. He lives in San Francisco, California.

Reviews

Grade 3-6-Each of Wilbur's short poems is a play on words inspired by a word found within another word. ("Moms weep when children don't do as they say./That's why there is a sob in disobey.") The apparent simplicity of the verses is deceiving. A certain level of sophistication is needed in order for readers to comprehend the wry humor and some of the vocabulary in the 2-to-10 liners. Seibold used Adobe Illustrator to create the eccentric, full-page color cartoons, busy with animal and human caricatures, line drawings, patterns, and words printed in a variety of colors. Even the illustrator's familiar Mr. Lunch makes an appearance. The visual jokes are as clever as the verbal ones. These nonsensical puns could be used to inspire creativity in the classroom.
Susan Scheps, Shaker Heights Public Library, OH
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Part hide-and-seek game, part dictionary, Wilbur's (The Disappearing Alphabet) exuberant text playfully demonstrates how smaller words are found within larger ones and shows the relationship between those words' definitions: "Sea is in nausea, which seems strange to me,/ Since nausea comes from tossing in the sea." But not all the embedded word connections are as clever as that one, and some words are definitely geared to older readers ("An obol is an old Greek coin. To think/ That one should be inside a bobolink!"). But the majority of the jaunty rhymes scan well and will encourage readers young and old to be on the lookout for similar types of wordplay. Siebold (Olive, the Other Reindeer; Mr. Lunch Takes a Plane Ride) injects an extra dose of fun into his computer-generated scenes with a stylized wackiness and attention to detail. On one particularly inspired spread, the artist pairs a portrait of "The Devil... at home.../ In Mandeville, Louisiana" on the left, with a creature tortured by a "gnat in indignation," leading a swarm of friends, on the rightAa sly reference to Beelzebub. Kids will also enjoy spotting the cameo appearances by Siebold's pup creation, Mr. Lunch, and Pok?mon character Pikachu. All ages. (Oct.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Gr. 3-5. "If you're fond of road-blocks, this one can't be beat: A big tree in the middle of the street." In this picture book for older children, poet Wilbur once again has fun with rhymes, puns, and wordplay, this time discovering short words within longer ones and the funny fit they make: boo and OK are both in book; sea is in nausea; no location is catless, and so on. J. Otto Seibold's computer-generated cartoon art picks up the outlandish connections and runs with them; in fact, the frantic pictures are sometimes distracting. For an older audience this could be a start for crossword puzzle games, where letters relate in surprising ways. Hazel Rochman
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Edition details

• Publisher: Harcourt Children's Books
• Publication date: 2000
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0152020195
• ISBN 13: 9780152020194
• Binding: Hardcover
• Illustrator: Seibold J.otto
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 56