I’ll be Home for Christmas

Loving piggy pals Toot and Puddle are back–well, actually, Toot isn’t back yet. As in Holly Hobbie’s earlier Toot and Puddle , Toot has the travel bug while Puddle contentedly tends the home fires. In his postcard from Scotland, Toot promises to be home for Christmas. But ice storms and delayed flights threaten to spoil the holiday plans… until an unexpected fellow traveler saves the day. Hobbie’s marvelous illustrations are filled with telling details and subtle Toot caroling his heart out in an Edinburgh blizzard with a few sheep buddies; Puddle curled up in an armchair with crayons and holiday cards (signed with a blank space before “and Puddle,” in anticipation of Toot’s signature). The devotion the pigs share for each other is sweet, never sickly, and young readers with best friends will know exactly how they feel, being apart at a most important time. Several more Toot and Puddle titles will also enchant, including A Present for Toot and You Are My Sunshine . (Ages 3 to 7) –Emilie Coulter