The True Adventures of Esther the Wonder Pig

December 18, 2017
Many animal lovers have already heard of Esther: she’s the 650 lb. rescue pig with 1.5 million followers on Facebook and Instagram. She also made her “dads,” Jenkins and Walter, animal activist celebrities: they opened an animal rescue farm after adopting her and, along with Crane, wrote an adult memoir about Esther. With the help of Doerrfeld’s cheery, straightforward cartooning, Esther’s story becomes a sweet domestic comedy, as much about besotted parental love as it is about life with a behemoth pig. Esther can’t help that she needs increasingly bigger beds (“We thought she was supposed to be a mini pig,” say her fathers, who do and say everything together). But Esther can do no wrong, even when she does: each transgressive episode ends with the hearts-embellished refrain, “She looked up at her dads with those eyes and that smile... it was love.” An Esther-goes-missing subplot in the final pages feels unnecessary—there’s plenty of narrative fodder in a pig who takes over a family. Ages 4–8. Author’s agent: Erica Spellman Silverman, Trident Media Group. Illustrator’s agent: Rachel Orr, Prospect Agency.

April 1, 2018

PreS-Gr 1-A human couple gets more than they bargained for when they adopt a piglet named Esther in this charming picture book. When Esther's dads first rescue her, they erroneously believe she is a mini pig and add her to the household of two dogs and two cats. As Esther grows to be six hundred pounds, she gets into trouble, but, despite all the mischief she causes, Esther's dads can't help but love her. Based on their adult memoir, Esther the Wonder Pig, Jenkins and Walter, who are Esther's real-life dads, and Crane bring this sweet family story to life for a younger audience. Doerrfeld's warm illustrations, done in digital paint, are able to capture both the affection between Esther and her dads, and the humor caused by her playful, rambunctious nature. Photos of the real Esther, along with information about the farm sanctuary in which she lives, are included. VERDICT Young readers are sure to fall in love with Esther just like her dads did.-Laura J. Giunta, Garden City Public Library, NY

Copyright 2018 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.