Mom, There's a Pig in My Bed: 07/22/06

A hot day requires easy reading, something not too taxing but still entertaining. On days like this I like to read books written for younger readers. There are so many that I missed when I was a kid that there's an endless supply! Mom, There's a Pig in My Bed! is a book I picked up from the January BookCrossing meeting in Dublin.

While I have to admit to being a little put off by the odd title and equally silly cover art, the first chapter had me hooked. The family was refreshingly different and not the typical either too perfect or "After School Special" disfunctional. The three children were interesting individuals and not just cut-outs placed in the story to prove a point or illustrate the "moral of the story."

Here's my BookCrossing review:

Mom, There's a Pig in My Bed was the perfect quick read for hot summer's day. It's the story of a misfit family of five trying to make a living at being entrepreneurs. The father, an inventor by heart, can't keep a steady job because he's too distracted by ideas for inventions. Having lost his current job, he and his family move to Kansas to try something new: raising seeing eye pigs for blind folks who are allergic to dogs. While the parents' story covers the financial worries of moving and making a go at being self employed, the children's story covers the problems that lying to hide embarrassment can cause: rumors travel fast in small towns.

My only complaint with the book is the family's Friday night recipe, Mishmash Surprise. I appreciate the need to use up left overs and have eaten a few caseroles that come close to Mishmash Surprise but some of the descriptions in the book are revolting.

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