| rdg590bookrationale |
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| Sam Houston State University RDG 590 |
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Book Rationale on A Day No Pigs Would Die
By Robert Newton Peck
Random House. New York 1972
ISBN:0-679-85306-5
“He smelled the best on Sunday morning,
when I sat next to him at Shaker Meeting.
He smelled just like the big brown bar of
soap that he used, and sometimes there was
some store-bought pomade on his hair.
But when you kill pigs for a living, you
can’t always smell like Sunday morning.
You just smell like hard work.”(Peck, 1972, p.17)
This book is part of the curriculum for students in grades 6th through 12 in the speech therapy/literacy program. What a great book to read just before Father’s Day! The story is about a young teen living in rural Vermont on his family’s farm. In a short 150 pages Robert Peck takes us on a timeless journey from childhood to adulthood.
The story is loosely autobiographical as the author names the principal character Robert and tells the tale of a young boy growing up in a Shaker family, much like he did. It touches on the hardships and realities of growing up in a rural setting. Robert deals with his transition from child to adult when faced with the problems of life, death and acceptance of others. He performs a noble act for a neighbor and is given a piglet for thanks. He grows to care for and love the pig but then learns hard lessons including tolerance for the complex world outside of his small sphere. He deals with accepting the responsibilities he must bear as the pig’s owner, as a neighbor, as a student struggling with English, and most difficult of all as a son.
The language in this book is rich, both with the voice or dialect used and with descriptive phrases and vocabulary. Reading this book will allow lessons related to semantics (word meaning), syntax (sentence structure) and critical thinking skills by analyzing plot elements, themes, tone and literary devices. These are strategies that can be transferred to reading other literature.
There are some who challenge this book being used in a class because the text deals with the death of a father and addresses the accompanying sorrow of the young son. Some scenes with the animals involve blood and slaughter. My least favorite is the “weaseling” of a dog. The outcome is humane but it is a difficult three pages for me. It is a small part of the book and will open conversations about caring for animals and compare/contrast papers. There are references to the mating of pigs and to religion. The family is portrayed as being Shaker and many of their acquaintances are portrayed as Baptist. Young Robert learns religious tolerance and the themes of love, and of friendship, are prominent. I think there is value in understanding that teens throughout the world and throughout time have many of the same issues to face on the road to adulthood. There are many good resources to help the students discuss the issues and the best resource is the family. I encourage you to read this book as well. It is a fast and easy read for an adult and will contribute to fostering good literacy skills and habits in your child by sharing a good book.
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| Last updated 2008/09/28 03:42:58 CDT | Hits 434 |
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