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 Review by
Louella Moreland
The childhood reluctance to bathe is captured by John Segal in the
humorous picture book "Pirates Don't Take Baths."
A darling little piglet resists his parent's plea to take a bath,
proclaiming loudly that he cannot possibly take a bath tonight, tomorrow or
ever. Why? The piglet is much too busy. He is a pirate -- complete with hat,
sword and eye patch -- sailing the seas. When his parent reminds him that he
gets seasick, the piglet decides that now he is a cowboy, and they don't
take baths either.
This series of excuses progresses through the piglet being an Eskimo,
knight, desert traveler and astronaut. Each personality has very good
reasons why bathing is out of the question. Each time the piglet announces
he is a different character, the parent reminds him of a reason why he may
not want to be that particular person.
Finally, the piglet decides to be a treasure hunter, and although he
pictures digging for treasure in the jungle, the parent finally bests his
offspring by suggesting that the ocean is a great place to be a treasure
hunter, successfully convincing the little one into the bathtub, where he
imagines the treasures awaiting him under the waves.
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Drawn in flat, cartoon style, using muted washed color with
outlines in black, Segal's pictures capture the determination of the
young pig and the exasperation of the parent. Double-page spreads
take the reader from icy waters of the North to the scorching desert
of the pyramids. One of my favorite illustrations is the piglet,
tongue hanging from his mouth, riding on a disgruntled camel.
The "voices" of the piglet and the parent are printed in regular
and italic fonts to differentiate between the two. While the text is
quite sparse, the dialogue between the two is so well selected that
the words beg to be read aloud!
Without question, "Pirates Don't Take Baths" will be a requested
read by young children, night after night. Especially when they are
trying to avoid the bathtub! It is sure to be a favorite here at the
Lincoln Public Library, so come in soon to check it out.
[Text from file received from
Louella Moreland,
Lincoln Public Library District]
Ms. Lou's blog:
lincolnpubliclibraryupdates.blogspot.com |
