The Sheep-Pig

Dick King-Smith's The Sheep-Pig is a gentle farm story for 7 year olds about a piglet who wants to do a sheepdog's job.

What happens

Farmer Hogget wins Babe at the village fair by guessing his weight (thirty-one and a quarter pounds, if you're wondering). Mrs Hogget is already working out how she'll fit the hams in the freezer. Babe, luckily, has no idea.

Fly the collie takes one look at the frightened little pig and decides to mother him. Soon he's following her everywhere, sitting when she sits and much preferring dog food to anything else. Then her puppies go off to work on other farms, and Babe asks the question that starts it all. If the puppies can work sheep, why can't a pig?

Fly thinks it's a sweet idea that will soon wear off. Babe does not.

His first go at herding the ducks is a bit of a muddle. Then he meets Ma, an old lame ewe with a nasty cough, and learns something no dog has ever bothered to find out. Sheep hate being bossed about. Ask them nicely and they're only too happy to help!

It's such a joy to read aloud. Mrs Hogget talks in one enormous breathless sentence that goes on and on. Farmer Hogget barely says a word ("Pig," is his whole answer when she asks about the noise at the fair). And the sheep call every dog a wolf.

There's real excitement too. When sheep rustlers turn up with a lorry, it's Babe's ear-splitting squeals that save the flock. After that, Farmer Hogget starts quietly building a course of hurdles, gates and a plank bridge around the farm. What on earth is he planning?

For a child with a soft spot for the underdog (or the under-pig), this is perfect. It's very gentle, but the freezer is always there in the background, which gives it just enough edge to keep them turning the pages.

What to read next

If this one goes down well, try Funny Frank, also by Dick King-Smith. This time it's a chick on a farm who stands at the edge of the duck pond every single day, wishing he could swim.