Freddy the Pig facts for kids
Freddy the Pig is the central figure in a series of 26 children's books written between 1927 and 1958 by American author Walter R. Brooks and illustrated by Kurt Wiese, consisting of 25 novels and one poetry collection. The books focus on the adventures of a group of animals living on a farm in rural upstate New York.
Freddy is introduced as "the smallest and cleverest" of the pigs on the Bean farm. He is initially just one of the ensemble, but he becomes the central character shortly into the series. Freddy's interests drive the books as he becomes a detective, politician, newspaper editor, magician, pilot, and other vocations or avocations. A recurring villain is the slimy but dignified Simon, who leads a gang of criminal rats. Human characters include Mr. and Mrs. Bean (who own the farm), the population of local Centerboro, and human villains.
Much of the humor in the books is derived from the self-referential way in which the author acknowledges the unreality of talking animals, unlike other children's works in which they are accepted as normal. As the series progresses, the Bean Farm animals attain national fame for their ability to talk and read, and the humans whom they encounter are taken aback at first (though only momentarily) to find themselves conversing with animals. The animals and humans do not age, although the stories reflect the social conditions at the time of writing; for example, the books published during World War II feature scrap drives and victory gardens.
Location of books
Nearly all the books focus on the Bean farm and Centerboro area, in Oneida County, upstate New York. Centerboro does not actually exist, nor do the other towns mentioned as being nearest (Aeschylus Center, Gomorrah Falls, South Pharisee, Plutarch Mills, and West Ninevah). However, other towns do exist, described as slightly farther away: Syracuse, Rome, Buffalo, and Utica, New York (mentioned, for example, in Freddy and the Baseball Team From Mars). This would put Centerboro somewhere east of Syracuse, close to where Brooks lived as a boy. However, in Freddy and Mr. Camphor, the nearby fictional lake Otesaraga is described as "thirty miles around, and only a mile across". This corresponds closely (and only) to Skaneateles Lake, some ten miles southwest of Syracuse. Regardless, the evidence supplied by Brooks points to the Bean farm being loosely within 30 miles southwest or generally east of Syracuse.
Illustrations
The series is illustrated by Kurt Wiese, who became an award-winning illustrator and author (although not for the Freddy series). The first book was originally illustrated by Adolfo Best Maugard but redone by Wiese when the book was re-released. After the first books, the pattern of illustration was established: a half-page black and white drawing at the beginning of each chapter, and a full page black-and-white drawing within each chapter. The covers are line drawings colored with watercolor, each emphasizing a dominant color. The endpapers are two-tone illustrations, loosely matching the cover's color theme. For example, the yellow background and blue drawing of the endpapers for Freddy Rides Again match the yellow and blue colors of the cover (Freddy, a horse, and a goat are yellow). Wiese drew more than 900 illustrations for the series.
Freddy books in order of publication
These are all 26 titles in the Freddy the Pig series. Five were originally published with other titles, in parentheses.
- Freddy Goes to Florida, 1927 (To and Again), ; re-issued as both Freddy Goes to Florida and Freddy's First Adventure in 1949
- Freddy Goes to the North Pole, 1930 (More To and Again), ; re-titled
- Freddy the Detective, 1932
- Freddy and Freginald, 1936 (The Story of Freginald); re-titled 1952
- Freddy and the Clockwork Twin, 1937 (The Clockwork Twin); re-titled
- Freddy the Politician, 1939 (Wiggins for President); re-titled 1948
- Freddy's Cousin Weedly, 1940
- Freddy and the Ignormus, 1941
- Freddy and the Perilous Adventure, 1942
- Freddy and the Bean Home News, 1943
- Freddy and Mr. Camphor, 1944
- Freddy and the Popinjay, 1945
- Freddy the Pied Piper, 1946
- Freddy the Magician, 1947
- Freddy Goes Camping, 1948
- Freddy Plays Football, 1949
- Freddy the Cowboy, 1950
- Freddy Rides Again, 1951
- Freddy the Pilot, 1952
- Freddy and the Space Ship, 1953,
- The Collected Poems of Freddy the Pig, 1953
- Freddy and the Men from Mars, 1954
- Freddy and the Baseball Team From Mars, 1955
- Freddy and Simon the Dictator, 1956
- Freddy and the Flying Saucer Plans, 1957
- Freddy and the Dragon, 1958
See also
In Spanish: Freddy el cerdito para niños
