  | Full Text Reviews: Booklist - 08/01/2009 “Hot butter beans!” cries pig farmer Desert Rose upon spying a gold nugget she can use to buy the “biggest, fattest hog in all of Texas.” But her shortcut home proves problematic when her new pig refuses to cross a creek. Seeking assistance from a cast of Western-themed characters, she asks Coyote to nip Hog so he’ll move, but Coyote is too tired to nip. Then Snake is too hot to stir Coyote; Cowboy is too afraid of Snake to help; and even Bronco the horse makes excuses. Finally, greedy Armadillo agrees to pitch in, sparking a chain of events that sends the whole crew scrambling to a happy ending. With folksy flair and a spunky protagonist, Jackson offers a comical cumulative-style tale. Though somewhat lengthy, the lively prose, sprinkled with Rose’s alliterative exclamations (“Chop my chaps!”), keeps fine pace, spurred on by brightly cartoonish characters, who reside in an exaggerated landscape. Though sometimes dense, the text is strategically bolded, and combined with the witty art will make entertaining reading or a festive read-aloud. - Copyright 2009 Booklist. School Library Journal - 11/01/2009 K-Gr 3— Desert Rose is a Texas pig farmer who finds a gold nugget and uses it to buy a big, fat hog with freckles and a thatch of red hair. Sure that he will win first prize at the state fair in Laredo, they take a shortcut. The highfalutin hog will neither set hoof in the creek nor drink up the water. Rose looks for help, thus beginning a cumulative tale that includes a coldhearted coyote, a persnickety snake, a contrary cowboy, his bothersome bronco, a lethargic longhorn, and an armadillo with attitude. When Rose promises a tasty reward, the armadillo springs into action, beginning a chain of events that gets the porker to the fair on time. He wins first prize, and Rose—as promised—gives the armadillo 200 pounds of ants, beetles, and grubs. (Rose and her hog never use that shortcut again.) The cartoon style of the acrylic illustrations accentuates the alliterative text. Youngsters will laugh out loud as Rose exclaims, "Starch my stirrups!" and "Pickle my pistols!" Like Nonny Hogrogian's One Fine Day (S & S, 1971), this tale gives an unlikely group of characters the chance to set things right, and its over-the-top telling makes it a surefire hit for storytime.—Mary Jean Smith, Southside Elementary School, Lebanon, TN - Copyright 2009 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission. Loading...
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