The unbelievable top secret diary of Pig has a cast of crazy farmyard characters including Pig, Duck, a herd of sheep and Evil Chickens. It is a hilarious adventure which I read in one sitting. When I read it to my daughter she asked me to keep reading, she wanted to find out what was going to happen to Pig.
The Story: Pig thinks that Farmer and Mrs Farmer love him as they feed him lots of slops but then Duck tells him that Farmer is fattening him up to be eaten. After worrying about his fate Pig decides to accept the Evil Chickens’ offer to pilot their Trocket to Pluto. Pig flies to Pluto to escape Farmer but then finds himself back on earth. A herd of sheep help Duck and Pig put their own plan into action, to send Farmer, Mrs Farmer and the Evil Chickens into space instead.
The unbelievable top secret diary of Pig is written in an easy to read font interspersed with cartoon pictures and double spread illustrations. We love the maps at the beginning and end of the story which show where the action takes place. Pig, with all his worries and uncertainties, is loyally supported by his best friend, Duck, who helps and advises him throughout the story. The Evil Chickens are very funny, very rude but they’re also very clever. Their ‘Trocket’ (a cross between a tractor and a rocket) uses Pig’s poo as fuel and has a satnav that speaks ‘Picken’ (a mix of ‘Pig’ and ‘Chicken’).
The humour in the story made us giggle uncontrollably in places. Pig’s slops make him fart and his extra smelly farts get him out of trouble on several occasions, they are particularly helpful when he plans to send Farmer and the Evil Chickens into space. Aliens, a mini farmer, an extra passenger and cunning disguises move this fast paced story along and make this book difficult to put down.
The unbelievable top secret diary of Pig is written in ‘Pig’. Pig speaks in the present tense and his grammar isn’t correct (which some teachers and parents may find difficult!). As my daughter is younger I corrected the grammar when I read to her. However, for older children Pig’s language adds to the humour and they will have the experience of knowing that Pig’s language uses ‘Pig’ grammar. You could use the book in the classroom to help children with their grammar skills, they could have a lot of fun translating ‘Pig’! We also made our own Trocket, another fun classroom activity.
This is such a hilarious book and it’s very surreal in places. The simple language and short sentences supported by the humorous illustrations make it a great first chapter book.
Age Range: 5 +
Author: Emer Stamp
We received a review copy of The unbelievable top secret diary of Pig. We weren’t asked to write this post but it’s such a great book we wanted to tell you about it.
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