Porkenstein - Hardcover

Lasky, Kathryn

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 059062380X ISBN 13: 9780590623803

Publisher: Blue Sky Press, 2002

Synopsis

Newbery writer Kathryn Lasky presents a wildly funny Frankenstein / Halloween tale in the vein of Dav Pilkey's bestseller THE HALLO-WIENER, with hilarious illustrations by new artist David Jarvis.

Dr. Smart Pig is a famous inventor, but he doesn't have any friends. His brothers were eaten by the Big Bad Wolf, and now he's all alone. Halloween is coming up, and he doesn't have anyone to go trick-or-treating with. Suddenly, Dr. Pig has an idea. He can INVENT a friend--a pig who is bigger and better and absolutely wolf-proof! But things don't turn out quite as expected, and soon Dr. Pig realizes he's created a monster--an enormous porker who hogs the show but ultimately proves that true friendship comes in all shapes, sizes, and appetites. Who ate the Big Bad Wolf? PORKENSTEIN, that's who!

About this title

Review

Face it, some kids are so lonely that if they had the power to concoct a buddy in a lab they'd do it in a heartbeat. Such is the fate of Dr. Smart Pig... heartbroken since his two brothers were eaten by the Big Bad Wolf a year ago. Glumly contemplating another Halloween alone, he decides to invent a fabulous, utterly wolfproof pig to keep him company. This backfires hideously. His first concoction is a pig fish; his second, a pig bat. The third time's the charm, and the next time he goes into his lab, he hears actual grunting, a good sign. But what's this? "There, on the table, was the biggest pig he had ever seen." Worse yet, it is very hungry--quite piggish, actually. As news of the giant monster-pig, Porkenstein, hits the media, the Big Bad Wolf gets very excited. Posing as a trick-or-treater on Halloween night, he goes to Dr. Smart Pig's house and knocks on the door. Porkenstein eats him, and everyone lives happily ever after. First-time picture-book illustrator David Jarvis succeeds in making veteran author Kathryn Lasky's silly story seem both mad-scientisty and friendly at the same time, infusing many comical details and unusual perspectives to keep things interesting. While not the best guidebook on how to make friends (make them in a lab? eat your friend's enemies?), Porkenstein is sure to amuse youngsters who prefer a not-too-scary Halloween tale. (Ages 4 to 8) --Karin Snelson

From School Library Journal

Grade 1-3-Dr. Smart Pig has been lonely since his brothers were eaten by the Big Bad Wolf so he decides to go to his laboratory and invent a friend in time for Halloween. He mixes some chemicals in a beaker, but his first attempt results in a pig with a fish body. His second attempt results in a pig with batlike wings. He tries again, this time hooking the beaker up to his Electro-Pig-o-Meter and throwing in an extra teaspoon of sugar. A few hours later, he discovers that he has created a giant pig that rapidly and rudely consumes every bit of food in the house, including the garbage and the garbage can. "It did not take long for stories about Porkenstein to spread." When the Big Bad Wolf shows up on Halloween dressed as a little old lady, the monster pig devours him. In gratefulness, Dr. Pig tells Porkenstein that he'll never have a better friend, and the two set off trick-or-treating together. The illustrations with their big, rounded shapes evoke a sense of fun and action, but the characters and plot are not developed into believable fantasy.
Adele Greenlee, Bethel College, St. Paul, MN
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Blue Sky Press
• Publication date: 2002
• ISBN 10: 059062380X
• ISBN 13: 9780590623803
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 40
• Illustrator: Jarvis David