Pigs Dig a Road
by Carrie Finison; illus. by Brian Biggs
Preschool, Primary    Putnam    48 pp.
9/24    9781984816542    $19.99
e-book ed.  9781984816559    $10.99

Hardhat-wearing pigs hurriedly build a road to reach the county fair. While Rosie stays up all night and “plans,” “outlines,” and “calculates,” her peers—Curly, Pinky, and Stinky—sleep. At work, the pigs follow a predictable pattern. Rosie directs; the crew messes up; Rosie fixes the problem. When the trio stakes the road incorrectly, for example, Rosie “checks the GPS / and straightens out / their crooked mess.” When their load of dirt and rocks misses the dump truck, “Rosie shows them how it’s done.” And so it goes. Until…poor Rosie needs a nap. Thankfully, Finison doesn’t just give Rosie a leadership role in a male-dominated field. Sure, she casts Rosie as a smart, problem-solving construction worker. But when Rosie needs a break, the author gives her one—and the crew works together to finish the job. Biggs’s detailed, motion-filled scenes will delight building enthusiasts. Compositionally, the art also supports the text’s theme of collaboration. Early on, Biggs offsets Rosie-in-charge from the others, framed or separated by the gutter, while in later more cooperative scenes, the four pigs occupy the same picture space. And, like any good construction story, this one’s packed with opportunities to spot favorite vehicles.

From the ">November/December 2024 issue of The Horn Book Magazine.