Little Pig Joins the Band

What's a younger brother to do when his older siblings are having all the fun? Jacob, aka Little Pig, would desperately like to don a uniform and play an instrument--piccolo, harmonica, or even tuba--along with everyone else. When he witnesses a practice session, Little Pig figures out exactly how he can contribute. Emily Eiden manages the interplay of narrative and dialogue masterfully. Her narrative is clear and firm, and she brings out all the playfulness, teasing, and sincerity in the youngsters' conversations. As the band negotiations play out, she transports listeners to Grandpa Pig's abode. Jaunty band music accompanies the story. A.R. © AudioFile 2012, Portland, Maine

May 9, 2011
"Sometimes Little Pig didn't like being little, or even being called Little Pig," writes Costello, as his diminutive hero, taking up what readers can assume is his usual position at the distant end of a family procession, vainly attempts to remind his oblivious relations: "My name is Jacob!" Things only get worse when the family puts together an impromptu band from Grandpa's collection of instruments: when Little Pig asks whether there's something smaller to play, like a piccolo, an elder cheerfully remarks, "There's a jar in the fridge, behind the olives." But the ensemble gives Little Pig his opening when they prove utterly unable to coordinate their movements: seeing them colliding and collapsed in a pig pile on the floor, Little Pig "knew what the problem wasâthe band needed a leader!" Costello (I Can Help) isn't pioneering new ground with this story of how a family's littlest member asserts his competence, but the combination of lovely and understated text, sly watercolors, and a protagonist who knows in his heart that he's right make the premise feel fresh and funny. Ages 4â7.