Baby Pig Pig Talks

McPhail’s picture book hero Pig Pig is back—as a baby. As his mother pushes him around in his stroller, she introduces words for things they see. When she singles out a cat, “Duba” is Baby Pig Pig’s response. “Snake,” she says, pointing at one (from atop a park bench). “Hissa,” Baby Pig Pig replies. The arrival of an affectionate dog finally prompts Baby Pig Pig to say his first “real” word, “Mama.” McPhail’s watercolors exude warmth and quiet humor, and the aural sources for many of Baby Pig Pig’s words (“Dinga” for tricycle, “Quacka” for duck) hint at how the gears are turning in his young porcine brain. Simultaneously available: Baby Pig Pig Walks. Up to age 3. Agent: Faith Hamlin, Sanford J. Greenburger Associates. (Aug.)