Welcome back to Perfect Picture Book Friday – the 2019 Edition! 🙂
I have an unusual (but fun) title to share with you today!
Title: Business Pig
Written & Illustrated By: Andrea Zuill
Sterling Children’s Books, September 4, 2018, fiction
Suitable For Ages: 3-7
Themes/Topics: fitting in/belonging, someone for everyone, being yourself
Opening: “One morning at the Sunshine Sanctuary for Farm Animals, Jelly Bean the sow gave birth to a litter of piglets.
Right away the volunteers noticed something unusual.”
Brief Synopsis: Jasper the pig is different from the other pigs – a suit-wearing, flow-chart-loving, genuine business pig. The farm animals mostly accept him for who he is. The trouble is, no one seems to want to adopt him. It takes a special person to bond with this special pig.
Links To Resources: make your own business model for getting adopted – what are your good points? what are your skills? what makes you lovable and fun to have around? make a poster! 🙂 How To Make Piggy Cupcakes
Why I Like This Book: The premise of this book is familiar – someone longing to be accepted and find his place in the world – but the delivery is delightfully inventive. Who would think of a business pig being born at an animal sanctuary? 🙂 Jasper applies his considerable business skills to the most important task of all – getting adopted – and proves in the end that there’s someone for everyone – you just have to look in the right place. The girl who ends up adopting Jasper is perfect 🙂 The art is very engaging, somehow managing to make a pig in a business suit look irresistibly sweet and cute. Although some kids might not engage with the whole business model, I think many kids will find the originality of this presentation fun and fresh.
I hope you enjoy it as much as I do 🙂
For the complete list of books with resources, please visit Perfect Picture Books.
PPBF folks, please add your titles and post-specific links (and any other info you feel like filling out 🙂 ) to the form below so we can all come see what fabulous picture books you’ve chosen to share this week!
Have a wonderful weekend, everyone!!! 🙂
Susanna Leonard Hill 
BUSINESS PIG
Oops…I hit “post comment” by accident. I meant to say that BUSINESS PIG sounds adorable. I will check it out. Thanks Susanna!
It’s different and cute, Nadine – hope you like it!
What a wonderful book. I have a feeling I would adopt the business pig!
He’s so cute, isn’t he, Sarah???!!! 🙂
I think I would like to hire a business pig!
I would like to have one work for me for free 🙂
Thanks for the new-to-me book suggestion–and cupcakes!
Nothing like a good book and cupcakes, Wendy 🙂
Wonderful story! Love the title! Thanks so much, Susanna, for providing this amazing platform for all of us and for all of the wonderful picture books.
And it looks like Wendy and I are creating some nice buzz for HONEYSMOKE!
I believe it is well established that great minds think alike, Vivian 🙂
This looks adorable! I especially love that Jasper’s task is to get adopted. A great choice!
He puts all his talents to work, Patricia 🙂
What a clever idea – a business pig who wants to be adopted. It sounds like a fun about being yourself.
It is, Pat, in a very fresh way, plus there’s the whole adopt an animal from a sanctuary angle so good on many levels! 🙂
Too cute! Love a pig in a business suit! That’s my kind of pig! Hoggy Friday! 😊
Didn’t she do a great job making him look business-like and so cute at the same time, Rene?! 🙂
Absolutely! Just love it! 🙂
This was one of my very favorites last year.
Glad you like it too, David!
Thank you, Susanna! I will definitely put this on HOLD at my local library.
Let me know what you think of it, Anne – it has pros and cons for me, but pros on the whole 🙂
This was one of my staff picks at the bookstore when it first came out! Love it!
This just proves that we are twin sisters separated at birth, Jules 🙂
Susanna, I love the cupcakes and “the business plan for getting adopted.” What a great way to have a “child” focus on their positive attributes! [Might not hurt a few adults to do so as well. :-)] Fun review.
I agree, Maria – we can all do with a little encouragement to appreciate our good points!
I feel ya, Jasper. When they yanked me out of the high-kill shelter and stuck me at the weekend adoption event, I felt really different from all the noisy, aggressive doggies around me. Even without your smooth necktie, blazer, and coffee mug, I was in the same boat – out of place and misfitty. Mom took me out of the cage and put me back THREE TIMES before she realized we were perfect for each other. There’s a pot for every lid. I’m glad we found ours….
Love and licks,
Cupcake
So true – this is the perfect book for you, Cupcake! 🙂
I love this book! The illustrations are adorable and the story has such humor and heart. ONe of my favorites! Thanks for sharing, Suzanne.
I’m glad you like it too, Judy! It is a cute story, and I love the art!
Cute story Susanna. So glad PPBF is back again this year. Off out now to enjoy our lovely hot summer… Around 27degC that’s about 81degF to you. 🙂
Oh, Diane… you do love to rub it in! It’s 15 degrees here. But just you wait… the shoe will be on the other foot come June! 🙂 ❤
I really enjoyed this book too! My second-third graders did too! As a PB writer, one of the things I liked most about it was even though the story was simple and predictable, it was perfectly crafted with engaging illustrations. It made for a fun lesson about setting.
I agree, Laura. She really did a good job bringing in some fresh elements to a tried and true tale.
I just read Business Pig last week. Too funny! I love his human…
I know, Sue! Isn’t she fantastic and just perfect???!!! 🙂
Oh how adorable. I love this Business Pig. He reminds me of an Alex P. Keaton (Family Ties), type of character…so cute!
Hahaha! OMG! So true, Jean!!! 🙂