PIGS IN THE MUD IN THE MIDDLE OF THE RUD
written by Lynn Plourde, illustrated by John Schoenherr
Blue Sky Press/Scholastic, 1997
also available to schools through Scholastic Book Club

"Pigs in the rud!"
Grandma said.
Oh no. Won't do.
Gotta shoo. But who?
"I'll shoo. That's who,"
Brother said.
And he shooed.
And he squealed.
And he rutted.
And he reeled.
But the pigs didn't budge.
Not a tiny little smudge.

About the Book

A farm family is trying to drive their Model T Ford down the rud (road), but pigs block the way and Brother can't shoo them. Then chickens are in the rud, and Sister can't scatter them. Sheep are next, and Mama can't make them shuffle. Finally, bulls join the ruckus, but Papa can't make them charge. This chaos certainly won't do. But who can shoo? Could Grandma clear the way? What will she say? Can she save the day?

Reviews

Publisher's Weekly . . . First-time author Plourde commands attention with this winsomely silly, trippingly rhymed tale. . . Punchy and full of verve, this is one story kids will want to hear many times over.

School Library Journal (starred review). . . The rhyming text has a satisfying rhythm, and fanciful words such as "smarge" and "shmuffle" add a playful appeal. Most definitely suited for reading aloud, the story will also suit beginning readers. Schoenherr's watercolors successfully capture the animals' resistance and the family's frustration . . . delightful jacket illustration

Horn Book Guide . . . The rollicking rhyming text and bustling watercolors make a noisy, uproarious reading experience.

Kirkus . . . The story is fun, but the language and rhymes make it rollick and roll, to the same rhythm the family car might make, heading down washboard road. A wonderful frolic in mud and verse, and Plourde's debut.

Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books . . . The spare text with its rhythmic refrain will have read-aloud audiences chanting along in no time. Schoenherr's line and watercolor illustrations are generously laid out with ample white space. His animals are expressive without being cutesy or anthropomorphic . . . Grab this one for wallowing great fun.

Children's Book Review Magazine . . . Plourde's verse bounces with energy as it tells the story. It reads naturally, in spite of its crafted cadences and nonsense words. Everything fits just so. And Schoenherr takes the fun to another dimension in paintings that get progressively closer to the muddy rud mess. The pictures run off the pages bringing the reader in on the action, and the body language and facial expressions are fittingly hilarious . . . have no fear that your reading talents might not measure up to the riotous events inside; the text does it all for you!

Children's Literature Review . . . All the elements that make storytelling appealing to young readers are included in this period piece about a family in a Model-T Ford. Humor, repetition, rhyming words and a strong central character combine to tell the story of a family and their wacky grandmother as they set out on an excursion. What they encounter and grandma's responses will have young children joining in the fun. The minimal illustrations are a perfect accompaniment.

Honors

Junior Library Guild Selection, 1997
School Library Journal Best Book of the Year, 1997
Children's Literature Choice List, 1998
Young Hoosier Book Award Nominee, Indiana, 1998-99
Utah Children's Picture Book Nominee, 1999
Volunteer State Book Award Nominee, Tennessee, 2001-02
Read with ME, selected picture book to be distributed to all Maine kindergarten students in 2003
New Jersey State Library Pick of the Decade List, 2005

Learning Activities

· Pigs in the Mud in the Middle of the Rud has a pattern that repeats throughout the book (both in terms of what happens in the story and the actual words that are used). Try to add to the pattern of the book. What if horses or goats or turkeys or other farm animals were in the rud? What new family members (cousins, baby, grandpa, etc.) could be added to the book to shoo them? Try to write a new part to the book that is consistent with the rest of the book. You might even want to create illustrations to go with your new story part.

· "Rud" is a slang Maine word for "road." In Maine, we might say, "I'm going up the rud a piece to visit my neighbah." (Some Mainers also leave off the final /r/ sounds in words.) Brainstorm a list of regional/colloquial words for your area. Make a list of these words and what they mean. Then you might write a regional story using some of these words—ayuh (that's Maine slang for "yes" or "that's right").

· John Schoenherr playfully has hidden names (of his granddaughters and others?) in some of the illustrations in Pigs in the Mud. They are written in cursive and are part of the art, such as in the squiggle lines in the mud. Look closely and see if you can find any hidden names. Do you know any other illustrators who hide words or images in their books?

· I call Pigs in the Mud a 3P STORY (which is a simple plan that can be used to create your own, similar kind of story). The first /P/ is for PROBLEM—a good story starts with a problem (What's the problem in Pigs in the Mud?). The last /P/ is for PROMISE—a writer has to make a promise to solve the problem by the end of the story (What's my promise at the end of Pigs in the Mud? How do I solve the problem?). The middle /P/ stands for PATTERN—a pattern repeats over and over in the middle of a story; that is, the author tries one thing to solve the problem, but it doesn't work. Then the author tries something else to solve the problem, but it still doesn't work. Finally, the last thing the author tries does solve the problem (and also keeps the promise). A story usually has 3-5 parts to the pattern in the story (more pattern parts can be boring and less isn't enough to make it a pattern). (What's my pattern in the Pigs book?) Try to find other 3P STORIES (hint: many of my other picture books are 3P stories, but not all of them). After you read and become familiar with 3P stories, then try writing your own 3P story—just make certain to plan it first, listing your ideas for the problem, pattern, and promise.

· Turn Pigs in the Mud into a simple play—it's soooooo much fun! A teacher or good reader could be the narrator and read the story aloud, pausing while others act out their parts. Chairs (two in front & three in back) could be a Model T Ford. Black construction paper can be cut with a curve and then bobby-pinned to the hair of the person playing Grandma for a bonnet, Papa might simply wear suspenders, the pigs could hold curled pink construction paper by their backsides for pigs' tails, bulls could hold up toilet paper tubes on their heads for horns, etc. Just use simple props and have fun!

Story Behind the Story

What can I say? Pigs in the Mud in the Middle of the Rud was my first picture book that was published, but it wasn't the first picture book that I wrote. I'd written many, many other stories, but they were all rejected by editors and publishing companies. It took thirteen years of writing children's stories before I finally held my first published book in my hands in 1997. I came so close to giving up writing for children several times during those 13 years, but I loved creating new stories (it was like making magic out of thin air—turning an invisible idea into a story that I could hold). And so, I didn't give up. I told myself I'd keep writing for children even if I NEVER got any stories published. I'm so glad I persevered (stuck with it)—writing for children is a dream job and worth all those years of rejections.

The idea for Pigs in the Mud in the Middle of the Rud came from something that really happened to me. I was writing in my home office in Madison, Maine, one day and I looked out the window and saw eight piglets running down my road. I had neighbors who had horses, but not pigs—I had no idea where those pigs came from. A short time later I was driving to town to volunteer in one of my kid's classrooms, and those pigs were running back up the road into someone's driveway. At the school, I was helping with writing and giving a mini-lesson that day on how to get ideas for stories. I told the students that sometimes you can write about things that really happen to you and then add some imagination (make-believe) to the true incident. I told about the piglets I'd just seen and that I could turn them into a story if I wanted to. A spark went off—it was like a challenge to myself—hmmmm, maybe I COULD write a story about those pigs in my road/rud. The next two days off-and-on I worked on the story (in between typing a teacher book that I was working on) and then mailed it off to a publishing company. Actually, the editor at Scholastic rejected my Pigs story, but it was the nicest rejection. He said there was so much he liked about the story (the chorus, the made-up words), but he didn't think the ending was strong enough and so he was rejecting it, but he'd love to see more manuscripts from me. "Ooh-la-la!" Didn't sound like a rejection to me. I stayed up until 2:00 am writing a new ending to the story (by the way, the first ending had Grandma getting sprayed by a skunk at the end of the story—the editor was right—it stunk!). I sent the revised Pigs story back to the Scholastic editor along with several other manuscripts for stories. Several days later, he called saying he LOVED the new ending and wanted to publish the book. It was the phone call and news I'd been waiting years and years to hear!

When I heard John Schoenherr was going to illustrate Pigs in the Mud, I was thrilled. After all, he'd illustrated Gentle Ben, Julie of the Wolves, and had won a Caldecott Medal for Owl Moon. Since I was a first-time kids book author, I couldn't have asked for a better "partner" for my first book. But I'll admit that I couldn't begin to imagine how the pictures would look since Mr. Schoenherr's other books were serious, not humorous. The editor sent me Mr. Schoenherr's sketches for the Pigs book,and then I was even more nervous because they were so scribbly that I couldn't even tell what was happening in them (Sorry, John!). But there was no need to worry, the final illustrations were perfect and oh-so-funny! I LOVE the Grandma character that he created; and those content, smiling pigs on the cover make me jealous (and want to wallow in some mud myself); and the back cover illustration is laugh-out-loud funny (some librarians and booksellers I know even put the book on the shelf with the back side of the book facing front to get readers attention =)!

Pigs in the Mud in the Middle of the Rud is dedicated to my husband, Paul Knowles. We were married in 1984 and since then he has supported and believed in my writing for children—even through all the years of rejections. As a former English teacher, he's given me feedback on my stories and let me know that I should never, ever give up. I'm so glad I didn't. Our family was so excited when I had my first book published after thirteen years of trying, that we wanted to celebrate in a special way. And so we had t-shirts made for everyone in the family with the cover of Pigs on the front of the t-shirts and the back cover of the book on the back of the t-shirts. And that's how this story came to be. THE END