Six Hogs on a Scooter

Three generations of the Hog family set out to attend an operatic performance of Pigoletto. They emerge from a pale-yellow house and stroll down the lawn to their sedan. ""The car sputtered. The car snorted. The car would not start."" They seek other unsuccessful modes of transportation, starting with young Horace Hog's two-wheeled scooter (""Six Hogs on a scooter makes an interesting sight""). However, by the time the group finally decides to catch a bus (""Six Hogs on a bus makes an interesting sight""), the opera has ended, and they must reverse their journey (""Six Hogs sleeping at a bus stop makes a very interesting sight""). Though this tale doesn't sparkle like some of Spinelli's (Somebody Loves You, Mr. Hatch) previous picture books, Nash (Saturday Night at the Dinosaur Stomp; Martian Rock) wryly pictures the hog sextet in their Sunday best, grinning despite the setbacks; a picture of Grandma Hog spinning on roller skates is especially entertaining. Ages 5-9. (Mar.)