When I reviewed WILD BOARS COOK earlier this month, I thought it was hilarious. I read it to a few classes this week and they begged me to buy the first book about these characters which I promptly did: MEET WILD BOARS by Meg Rosoff and Sophie Blackall. Well, this one may be even MORE hysterical. And the writing is so smart! This is definitely my favorite book of the day. I laughed so hard reading it that I almost cried. The beginning starts like this:
This is Boris.
This is Morris.
This is Horace.
This is Doris.
They are wild boars.
They are
dirty and smelly,
bad-tempered and rude.
Do you like them?
Never mind.
They do not like you either.
That really may be the best lead of a book I have ever read! Who thinks of these things? And the book stays just as funny throughout. I won't give anything away but I laughed aloud on several pages. (I also laughed at the author blurb.)
These four wild boars are definitely joining Scaredy-Squirrel, Chester, Elephant and Piggie, Pigeon and Farmer Brown and Duck as some of my very favorite picture book characters ever! Can't wait for another one. And it definitely goes on my "Books I Can Read A Million Times" List!
Years ago I was at an ALA breakfast where Meg Rosoff and Sophie Blackall shared their emails as they worked on the original book. Hilarious. I have always loved the first book and was interested in your review of the second having not seen the first. For me so much of the humor of the first is in the shock. Fun as the second is, it pales for me next to the original. Ah Doris!
ReplyDeleteOh, hilarious. I cannot wait to get my hands on this. Thanks!!
ReplyDeleteGreat find FRanki!!! You did it again!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Franki! I just read this to first and second graders and they hooted and hollered through the whole thing!
ReplyDeleteMichelle
School Librarian
Columbia City, OR