FROM THE CRITICS Publishers Weekly Raise your hands up high and give it up for the Pig Rock Band, a group of swinging swines making its first appearance in eye-popping print. Staake's (My Little Color Book) illustrations, a stylistic collision of Russian constructivism and pop art, explode with energy, playing off basic geometric shapes and angles and swimming in saturated colors. The pictures get up and groove, as they depict Freddy, Eddie, Clem and Ray-a quirky quartet with bodies made up of circles-performing in concert and signing autographs for star-struck fans. Staake gives each his own personality: country-western Clem, a "pig in jeans with leather boots," sports spurs and a curlicue hairdo, while Ray, a cool cat in tux and shades, tickles the ivories. The gig's almost up when the band's tour bus drives off the road and they must race to arrive before the curtain goes up ("Pigs run. Pigs climb. Pigs arrive just in time"). Jones's text has enough rhythm and repetition ("Fans clap. Fans cheer. It's the pig rock band they love to hear") to attract children with an ear for music, but the images' joyous intensity really makes the volume sing. Clever typography woven into the illustrations (the bus, operated by the Porkopolis Bus Tour Line, posts its destination, Oinkville) adds a jolt of humor. A rockin' feast for young eyes, this book hits a high note. Ages 3-8. (Mar.) Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information. Children's Literature - Barbara L. Talcroft "Pigs rock. Pigs roll. / Pigs sing with heart and soul." Simple rhymes with a real beat rock along accompanied by Staake's marvelous pictures done in bright but subtle colors and cleverly composed of basic shapes like triangles, rectangles and, above all, circles. From the endpapers in snappy porcine pink, through the many well-designed double-page spreads, the four rock-star pigs sing, play, travel, and eventually find themselves and their bus dropped into a pond, only to be rescued by an ice cream truck just in time to make their latest gig. All the players' heads are large circles in various shades of pink, and one (the super-cool piano player), in biscuit brown with round purple shades. The audiences (full of circular and rectangular people, space creatures, and even an alligator), are tinted muted purples to focus attention on the brightly lighted piggy performers. Perhaps the most spectacular spread, although it's hard to choose, shows a concert in Central Park with the players inside a half-circle bandshell in the lower left, while purple and black buildings loom over green bubble trees and form a tapestry-like graphic pattern from the narrow, lighted windows. This energetic, bouncy tale would work well both as a read-aloud and for sharing one-on-one with an adult to explore the many witty details. "Fans clap. Fans cheer. / It's the pig rock band they love to hear." Young music lovers will be sure to agree. 2003, Viking, Ages 3 to 8. School Library Journal PreS-K-This lightweight offering depicts the odyssey of a band of urbane pigs playing gigs. These groovy porkers who dabble in a variety of musical styles are shown living the li.... Published at Sixteen dollars.  Viking Imports 0-670-03581-5 / 9780670035816
Hardcover As New  As New Book Jacket New York, New York, U.S.A. 

Price: 15.75 USD