The Lying King

Starred review from August 1, 2018
When other animals fail to take a stand, a lying warthog becomes their king with devastating results."A runt who wanted / to be a huge pig," the warthog "started off small," telling tall tales and lying "to feel big." Claiming night is day and rain is dry, the warthog brags how high he can fly, how great and handsome he is. Many find his behavior shameful but do nothing to stop him. As "his fibbing got bolder," the bullying warthog climbs "up on the backs of his lies" to become king, lying to fill his wallet, questioning "all that was right," and turning subjects against one another. But when "all that was false was spoken as true," his lies eventually ensnare him. Beard spins his relevant cautionary tale in droll verse that builds in intensity as the warthog's dishonesty expands. Signature ink-and-watercolor illustrations feature the warthog and his exotic subjects, drawn in neat, black outlines and filled with pale washes. The plain white background calls attention to the hand-lettered text and drama of the narcissistic warthog, who wears an officious sneer and absurd crown, strutting, posing, leaping, denouncing, and accusing his way across pages as stunned animals collapse beneath his lies.This witty, contemporary fable brilliantly champions truth in an era of fake news, alternative facts, and rampant lies. (Picture book. 4-8)

COPYRIGHT(2018) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

September 1, 2018

Gr 1-3-Warthog is a liar. His boasts and lies start small and grow as he gets older. Warthog gets so good at telling lies that when it is time to choose a king, he lies his way to the crown. As king, he lies, cheats, distracts, steals, and is unjust. The other animals find it hard to stand up to his bullying. In time, the king gets so tied up in lies that his subjects finally rise up against him. Warthog, the lying pig, is banished. Consistent with the author's other watering hole picture books, stylized pen-and-ink and watercolor illustrations are mainly of animals from continental Africa. White space and text take up most of the pages, with very little room for the illustrations. In conjunction with the conversational text, the narration is cleverly crafted with flowing rhymes and sometimes humorous quips. This combination works well, if somewhat too long for a lapsit book. While children may find a lesson in virtue in Warthog's tale, the book will resonate more with an adult audience and is steeped in allusions to the current political climate. VERDICT An entertaining addition in the vein of the fables of Aesop.-Mindy Hiatt, Salt Lake County Library Services

Copyright 2018 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.