Sarah Matahari Lorelai Piggins is one of 15. Her mother is a great mum, but her siblings not so much. Her 13 sisters are all evilly inclined,
and her brother Bramwell is the most useless and laziest pig in the entire world. As all 15 plus mum are in a very small pig sty on a farm, with only pig swill for meals – Sarah wishes for more.
Her mother just happens to be a very good cook and when she is offered a job aboard a luxury yacht, she jumps at the chance, with her growing piglets in mind. Much to her sister’s disgust, Sarah is left in charge of her siblings and the management of any funds sent home from their mum. When those funds don’t arrive, Sarah knows she must find another way to fund her sibling’s requirements. Namely – food. (none actually ate the pig swill their friendly farmer provided, and the thought was even less desirable when they realise Bramwell bathed in it!)
Sarah has picked up on their mother’s culinary skills and she puts them to the test. Aha! She is brilliant at all things cake. Single handed, she bakes them into bliss, but one day her thankless siblings push her a step too far. Sarah blows her top – in public.
She wakes as part of a circus. All she can remember is a greasy, smiley circus ringmaster passing her a cupcake….
There is no way out. At least this is what she is told. But Sarah is a determined pig. A clever pig. A never say die pig. She vows to escape to get back to her family, no matter how ungrateful, lazy and evil they may be.
Her imagination knows no bounds, but she is foiled again and again. It seems she is to be a circus pooper scooper forever.
Will she ever escape the towering piles of poop? Will she ever see her siblings again? Will she ever live the life she dreamed of from the sty all those years before?
A prequel to the hilarious series The Adventures of Nanny Piggins!
Everyone likes an origin story – especially for characters we really love. And what’s not to love about a Nanny who is actually a four foot pig who inhales anything chocolate and is a baking genius?
Like the 9 book series of Nanny Piggins, this novel is packed with fun, action, and lots and lots of cake. I enjoyed the humour, the friendships and bonds made between animals, the continuing battle between Sarah Piggins and a truly dastardly ringmaster, and the use of language that will actually enhance children’s vocabulary.
Sure, a pig who bakes cakes, loves sparkly performance outfits and becomes a shooting star of a circus might seem a little bonkers, but woven effortlessly into the narrative are themes of friendship, fractured family bonds, and standing up for others.
The perfect way to launch back into this series, or meet the pig that Nanny Piggins used to be.
Author – R A Spratt
Age – 8+
(2024, Penguin Australia, Series, Animals, Pigs, Circus, Baking, Baker, Chocolate, Cake, Evil Ringmaster, Siblings, Pignapped, Kidnapped, Humour, Funny, Cranky Pig, Escape Plans, Flying Pig, Cannon, Action, Adventure)