cover image A Day with the Bellyflops

A Day with the Bellyflops

Francine Bassede. Orchard Books (NY), $14.95 (32pp) ISBN 978-0-531-30242-2

Mrs. Bellyflop, mother to three piglets, just wants a little break from her rambunctious offspring to work in her new office in the old toolshed. But she has scarcely sat down at her desk when the first crisis arises: Lilly complains that Peter has ""messed up my tutu"" trying to squirt baby Wiggly with the hose. Then Peter devours all the apples for their apple pie and twice the three piglets become covered with mud. In a wry twist, when Mr. Bellyflop arrives home to relieve his wife, and recruits the trio to help him make dinner, the wise matriarch finds ""all kinds of excuses to stay in the kitchen... just to be sure that things didn't turn out like the last time Mr. Bellyflop and the children did the cooking."" Bass de is at her best when painting the impish piglets engaging in various forbidden activities. She provides a steady stream of droll shenanigans, and the piglets' angelic-turned-devilish expressions will keep youngsters giggling and parents nodding in recognition. Unfortunately, the story tends to focus more on the mother's viewpoint than the children's, and the pacing is uneven. What readers will most remember are the author's pastel-hued watercolor pictures, which impart the boundless energy of this mischievous brood. Ages 4-7. (Mar.)