Swine Lake - Hardcover

Marshall, James; Sendak, Maurice

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 000198408X ISBN 13: 9780001984080

Publisher: HarperCollinsChildren’sBooks, 2000

Synopsis

A mangy old wolf finds fulfillment in the most unexpected of places...

Finding himself in a new part of town, the wolf spots a theatre which is putting on a new production of Swine Lake. Driven mad by the photographs of tasty pig dancers, he gets himself tickets for the best seat in the house.
Whilst feasting his eyes on the dancers and trying to decide which one to eat first, the wolf finds himself gripped, not by hunger, but by the story, and when the ballet ends, he hasn’t eaten a single pig.
The next day, the wolf returns to the ballet, and this time is so carried away with the story that he joins the dancers on stage. Again, he eats no pigs, but his performance receives excellent reviews in the paper the next day!

AGE 4-7

About this title

Review:

Wolves and pigs have always been excellent fodder for suspenseful children's stories, and Swine Lake proves it once again, this time in the masterful hands of the late James Marshall and Maurice Sendak. Marshall wrote the book fully intending to illustrate it himself, but when he died in 1992, his good friend Sendak was charged with the challenging task of bringing this delightful work to life. And come to life it does! The rollicking tale opens with a mangy, hungry wolf on the prowl in an unfamiliar part of town. Soon the wolf's nose twitches uncontrollably. He smells pigs! Just across the street is a theatre marquee bearing the words: "Swine Lake. Boarshoi Ballet." The wolf can scarcely conceal his delight and "Soon the aroma of pig, thinly disguised by French perfume, was making him swoon."

Snatching matinee tickets from a swanky ticket-scalping sow who arrives in a limousine, he enters the theatre. "Had the ticket taker been more observant, he would have noticed the long claws and much that follows could have been avoided," Marshall adds parenthetically. The wolf is escorted by a distracted usher to his box seat, just a short pounce from the stage. When the show begins, the wolf ponders which might be the juiciest pig. But as he assesses the probable quality of the pork, he begins to get lost in the magical story and decides to put off his attack until Act Two ... and in fact forgets to make his move altogether. That very night he breaks into his piggy bank and spends his last penny on a ticket for the evening performance of Swine Lake.

Anyone who is familiar with Swan Lake will be positively giddy to behold Marshall and Sendak's fabulously porcine take on this well-known ballet, but certainly no cultural context is necessary to appreciate the simple plot. With a winning story about the power of the theatre to soothe the hungriest, toothiest of beasts, this fabulous team has made an absolutely historic contribution to children's literature. Fans will see a lighter, funnier side to Sendak than they've seen before, as Marshall's comic spirit gently guides his paintbrush and pens. (Ages 4 and older) --Karin Snelson, Amazon.com

Review:

Sendak's illustrations are filled with sly references to the arts for adults reading this very fractured, very funny tale to children.CCBC Choices 2000

About this edition

• Publisher: HarperCollinsChildren’sBooks
• Publication date: 2000
• ISBN 10: 000198408X
• ISBN 13: 9780001984080
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 48