If I told you the library just got in the 25th book in a series, you might wonder what in the world could be popular enough to have 24 other regularly circulated titles? Elephant and Piggie by Mo Willems is a series of simple early reader books, and the relationship between the title characters while humorous, fun, and occasionally directed at the reader may interest adults, the overall silliness of elephant and piggie keep even the youngest reader coming back for more.
Over the series so far the two friends have encountered many other animals and situations, and this week’s Port Pick called The Thank You Book, attempts to review nearly every other side character in the series so far from squirrels, a snake, doctor cat, and even a whale. All through the thanks-o-rama by Piggie, Elephant is frantically trying to get his attention. Piggie thinks it’s because Elephant is afraid he’ll get left out of the showers of thanks, but instead Elephant quietly tells Piggie to thank the reader as well. So, for one page at the end of the book the fourth wall is broken as a book’s characters thank the reader for being there.
If this sounds like the end of a series, it’s because it is. The massively popular fictional duo will officially retire from their own series, but look for them to “sponsor” other short early reader tales in the future by making guest appearances. And if you’re just discovering the series for the first time, the library has nearly all the other books in the series already on the shelf.
You can get the book reviewed here and more great titles to watch, read, listen to, or play with at the Port Library at 1718 N. Hersey in Beloit.