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| Swine Not?: A Novel | 
 enlarge | List Price: $21.99
Buy New: $4.38
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Avg. Customer Rating:  (based on 60 reviews)
Sales Rank: 5847
Category: Book
Author: Jimmy Buffett
Publisher: Little, Brown and Company
Studio: Little, Brown and Company
Manufacturer: Little, Brown and Company
Label: Little, Brown and Company
Languages: English (Original Language), English (Unknown), English (Published)
Media: Hardcover
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 256
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1
Dimensions (in): 9.3 x 5.9 x 1.1
ISBN: 0316114022
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.54
EAN: 9780316114028
ASIN: 0316114022
Publication Date: May 13, 2008
Release Date: May 13, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Customer Reviews:
 A light confection that leaves the reader amused and satisfied July 30, 2008
Reviewed by Sandie Kirkland for RebeccasReads (7/08)
Things are a little weird in the McBride household. Ellie has just been hired as the dessert cook at Flutbein's Hotel, a top restaurant in New York City. That's too long a commute from Vertigo, Tennessee, so the family is packing up and moving to the city, where they'll live in the hotel. Maple and Barley are Ellie's twelve-year-old twins. Maple loves to design clothes and is a devotee of the top designer Karen Wu, while Barley is a first-rate soccer player. The twins' dad, Oliver, is out of the picture; a dreamer always following a new dream and occasionally dropping into their lives.
The family makes the move, and the kids get familiar with their new surroundings. Everything is working out except for one thing. This family comes with a pet pig, a one hundred and fifty pounder named Rumpy. Rumpy is pig non grata at the hotel, which has a prohibition against exotic pets. That means she must constantly be hidden away, and is trapped in the apartment. The family is on constant pins and needles, trying to keep her hidden away.
Unfortunately, Rumpy has a personal enemy. The head chef at the restaurant, Boucher, hates animals and can only conceive of them as his next dinner creation. How can the family protect Rumpy from Boucher? How will Ellie handle working for such a disagreeable sort? Will Maple and Barley fit into the social scene in New York City and their new school? Can Rumpy find her twin brother, Lukie, who is somewhere in the city?
Buffet handles all these situations deftly, spinning a light confection that leaves the reader amused and satisfied. This would be a great book for families to read together, perhaps as a nighttime story stretched over several weeks. It's a perfect traveling book, or just a great book to while away an afternoon in the backyard or at the local pool. I highly recommend it as an interesting, fun read for all.
 A huge disappointment July 21, 2008
I have read everything that Jimmy Buffet has written (except for the children's stuff), and am a big fan of his music. When I saw this book on the shelves, I snapped it up. All I can say is this: don't waste your money. Yes, I finished it. It was all I had to read on a pair of flights to and from the east coast. It appears to be written for fifth graders. There is almost no plot, the scenes are silly, banal, and boring. Come on Jimmy, give us another Joe Merchant.
Light Summer Read July 21, 2008
As a devoted Parrothead I was looking forward to the release of Jimmy Buffett's new novel Swine Not? but I must say that some of the negative press swayed me from getting the novel on its release day. Instead I bought the book to read on a short Mexican vacation and I'm glad I did.
The story follows the adventures of the McBride family following their move from Vertigo, Tennessee to New York City. The McBrides; single mom, Ellie; the twin siblings, Maple and Barley and their pet pig Rumpy. The family moves into the elegant Flutbein Hotel where Ellie has just gotten a job as pastry chef. The problem comes about when the hotelnstarts a "no exotic" pets policy that pits the family against the hotel's head chef Bouchor.
Written in very simple prose that seems to be aimed at the preteen and teen set, the book is a simple fast read that is perfect for a day at the beach or just lounging at home. This is a "G" rated family adventure that is miles away from the usual Buffett offerings. Take this one for what it is and enjoy. Its a great read for anyone from eight to eighty and it has that key feature that not many books have today: It will put a smile on your face.
Recommended.
Swine Not? 'Cause It Was Boring! July 16, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
First of all, I'm a parrot head, so I guess it was required reading. With 40+ CD's in my collection, Buffett's music is an integral part of my emotional survival kit. I have also found some of his other books enjoyable.
Having said that, this book was amazingly boring, requiring substantial will power to make it to the finish. I could possibly see some appeal to pre-teen female readers, and there's nothing in it that would be unsuitable for that age group. For adult audiences, this book offers absolutely nothing that the Jimmy Buffett aura promises to deliver.
This book should have been targeted toward a youth market. In that arena, it could have been well received, and deservingly so. Aimed at an adult market, it's only apparent purpose can be to pluck a few more dollars from his large band of devoted followers.
 Swine So July 16, 2008
6 out of 8 found this review helpful
This is not Buffett's normal type of novel, so don't buy it expecting mysteries in the tropics with aging pilots & sea captains. It's written from the perspective of a pig & one of her owners, and the switching between narrators can sometimes be confusing. It's a clean book, completely perfect story for children (in fact it started as a children's book). It's got a lot of adventure and the narrations from the pig really do get you into the mind of a lesser animal. It's great for adults too, a great observation of how animals observe humans. The book seems long but the text is fairly large and makes for a quick read. It's worth the purchase.
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