THE AMAZING PIG
by Paul Galdone
Once more a king announces a contest for his daughter's hand; once more a poor peasant sets out to win it; and once more Galdone disarms with his down-to-earth egalitarian humor. This time, the prize will go to any man who tells the king something he cannot believe. The peasant's story deals with his father's wonderful pig, who gives milk, lays eggs, grows back all the bacon that is sliced from his side, catches fish and mice, and commissions clothes for the family with the gold he finds on the road. Through all this the king, stifling smiles, repeats "I believe you"; but when the lad adds that the pig is getting old and blind—"And that is why my father hired your own grandfather as a swineherd to look after him"—he elicits an outraged "That can't be true. I don't believe you!" Never mind that Galdone's pictures have become predictable—they still give his stories more life and simple fun than many more ambitious illustrators can summon.