Peddles

Stantonfollows Henny with another gently funny tale of a barnyard outsider. Peddles, apale pink pig, dreams of bringing civilization to his brethren. Stanton drawsvignettes of the other pigs “grunting and rooting and wallowing and…” (youguessed it—pooping, graphically). Peddles “thought about the usual pig thingsdifferently,” writes Stanton as she shows him fantasizing about speaking actualwords (“Howdy!”), bathing in a tub, and sitting on a toilet with a newspaper.The sight of a hoedown gives Peddles a new idea—he wants to dance! His attemptsto walk in a pair of discarded cowboy boots might have led his fellow pigs tomake fun of him. Instead, they help him stand, then try on some footwear oftheir own. Peddles is an eccentric, but he can also be understood as a stand-infor a child starting down the road toward adulthood, trying on big shoes anddreaming about doing grown-up things. He’s easy to love, and his porcinecompanions seem like the nicest of friends—even if they aren’t toilet-trained.