Charlotte's Web

Charlotte's Web, by E.B. White, 184 pages

Charlotte is a terribly intelligent spider- she can read and spell words into her web.  Which, for some reason, she takes upon herself to do in order to save the life of young Wilbur, a very cute little pig who really wants a friend.  By spelling such phrases as "Some Pig" into her web, the farmers and the whole town come to appreciate the young pig.  And at its heart, this is a story about coming to terms with death as being a part of life, and as such, it's a rare and welcome work in the juvenile canon.

But... you guys.  You guys!! I know this is not a popular thing to say, but I found this book problematic.  Like... what's Wilbur's deal?  He spends the entire book being adorable, but absolutely helpless- the only way he makes it past page 1 is by being saved by young Fern, and the rest of the book is a series of saves by other strong females relegated to the background, culminating in being saved by a smart, well-educated spider who WRITES HUMAN ENGLISH WORDS INTO A WEB.  But the PIG is the one who is seen as spectacular! There is a total of one character who notes that the spider is the extraordinary one- Mrs. Zuckerman- and she is promptly ignored.  And I don't want to ruin the ending for anyone else who made it a lifetime without reading this, but Charlotte dies happily because she has saved Wilbur and got to have a bunch of baby spiders.  Also, take my advice and don't make that last point loudly at a baby shower because everyone there will give you a death glare or cough awkwardly and it will get really quiet and you will feel like a terrible person.

The Adventures of a South Pole Pig

The Adventures Of A South Pole Pig by Chris Kurtz, 278 pages

This was a really enjoyable story about a pig, named Flora, who is ready for adventure. Born on a farm where they train sled dogs, all Flora wants is to get out of her pen and explore. She meets a cat named Luna who tells her about some things on the farm but that just makes Flora more eager to see things for herself. When a board comes loose, Flora is able to get out of the pen and explore and sees the dogs training. Watching them work together as a team she knows that what she wants more than anything is to be a sled pig. At last her chance seems to come. Men come in a truck determined to catch one of the pigs. Flora hears dogs in the truck and decides that this may be her way off the farm and onto a sled so she allows herself to be caught. Will Flora get the chance to prove herself or is she headed for disappointment? Kids that like animal adventure stories will enjoy this book.