Pig Has a Plan

In this succinctly silly addition to the I Like to Read series, readers meet Pig, whose rotundity and heavy-lidded angst may prompt speculation that he and Garfield were separated at birth. Contrary to the title, Pig actually has two plans. The first—“Pig wants to nap”—is quickly thwarted by his fellow barnyard inhabitants, who are engaged in activities that make sleep impossible (“Cow wants to gab” on her cell phone, “Hen wants to saw,” and Cat insists on popping every balloon inflated by two frustrated mice). Pig’s second and more successful plan is to sleep submerged in mud, using a straw as a snorkel (“Now Pig can nap”). But the other animals know something special about Pig, and they have yet another plan in store for him. Long’s (Soup for One) broad, distinctly cartoony sensibility is in full force. The eye-popping palette, Pig’s slow burn, the oblivious supporting cast, and prose with lots of short-but-sweet word sounds (“Pup wants to bop”; “Hog wants to hum”) should make this popular with avid and reluctant readers alike. Ages 4–8. (Sept.)