Ten hungry pigs

When one very hungry pig and his duckling partner-in-dine sit down to nosh on the most classic of comfort foods, a peanut-butter-and-jelly sandwich, nine other very hungry (and very eager) pigs begin to add their own toppings, one by one. But the duo grows more and more alarmed as the additions pile perilously (and disgustingly) high. Soon, that humble PB&J is covered with pickles, peas, gravy, bees, and mac and cheese! Anderson engages readers as early as the inner title pages, providing visual hints of the food to come. His use of two-page spreads for each scene nicely captures the comical chaos that ensues for the first pig. Little ones will chuckle and snort reading about the gross flavor combinations and watching the once-simple sandwich rapidly grow into a tower of muck. In addition to the clever lesson on beginning counting skills, little ones will be delighted by the twist ending, which happily sets everything back to the way the one hungry pig always wanted.--Greengoss, Annie Copyright 2016 Booklist

Peanut-butter-and-jelly's a great snack for a pig and a duckuntil nine unwanted guests show up. One hungry pig and its sidekick duckling have made their PBJ when along comes a second pig, bearing pickles. That can't go on a PBJ! " I like lots of peas,' cries pig number three. / On this sandwich? Are you kidding me?" A fourth brings fruit piled up on her hat, Carmen Miranda-style. (She's the only pig with eyelashes, and she wears a pink dress, in a lazy, stereotyped depiction.) The fifth brings fish, the sixth brings bees (trailing its honey jar), and the seventh, some rhyming macaroni and cheese. Pigs eight through 10 pile on pancakes, gravy, and ice cream with sprinkles, respectively. No pig is going to think a sandwich like that sounds good to eat, but "Pig Eleven likes what he sees. / It looks delicious to me!' " But waitthere are only 10 pigs. It's a wolf! The pigs scatter, leaving that delicious PBJ to be enjoyed by the first pig and the duckling (once the duckling gets out of the wolf costume). Anderson concocts a droll and daffy counting tale in serviceable rhyme. Arabic numerals are absent, and the text is set in El Grande, an all-uppercase typeface, making this less a book to teach numeracy than a silly tale for storytime. The digital illustrations are in Anderson's signature style and will be familiar to fans of his work in the Hot Rod Hamster series. A snack-time (and storytime) treat. (Picture book. 2-6) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.