| Booktalk
#1
Do you like games? Barney learned
a new game. It's called Interstellar Pig. Each player takes on the role
of an alien from another planet. The object of the game is to be the player
with the Piggy when the timer goes off. When the timer goes off, the universe
explodes, and the only planet saved is the one with the Piggy on it. Then
suddenly Earth appears on the game board. Barney was sure it wasn't there
the first time they played. And Barney begins to think that maybe
Interstellar Pig isn't a game at all! (Debbie Gray, School Library
Media Specialist, Jackson Annex, Hempstead, NY debedgray@hotmail.com)
Booktalk #2
When was the last
time you ever witnessed an interplanetary war? Have you ever saved the
world because of a board game, or thought something was one thing, but
turned out to be another? Barney, the main character of Interstellar Pig,
witnesses all of this and more during this adventure, Barney learns about
the many other creatures that inhabit the universe.
Interstellar
Pig, an interest holding novel by William Sleator, is about a board game
with the unlikely name of “Interstellar Pig”. The novel is set on a vacation
beach in modern times with Barney's family of everyday tourists looking
for a good time.
In the beginning
of the novel, sixteen-year-old Barney is listening to a conversation between
Barney's Parents and one of their guests. By the end of the conversation,
the neighbors who seem a little more than strange to Barney arrive to stay
in the ugly house next door. Barney's parents seem to be getting stranger
as Barney gets to know the neighbors better.
After a wind surfing
trip to a remote island, and Barney finds a small rusted box, the neighbors
seem a little mad at Barney. This strange behavior causes Barney to open
the little box and “Could it be!” The coin-like Piggy is staring Barney
in the face mocking him. In the next game Barney plays, things are getting
even stranger. Earth is now part of the game. He was sure it wasn't there
the first few times he played. Then Barney realized it wasn't a game.
Now that Barney has found the real Piggy he must fight to save his life
and the rest of the world. Join Barney on an exciting adventure to discover
the truth of the Piggy before it destroys the world and everyone else.
Interstellar
Pig is very suspenseful novel that will keep you so interested that you
cannot stop turning the pages. Barney has many adventures and many close
calls while discovering the truth about these neighbors. To share these
adventures and enjoy a great book, read Interstellar Pig. You will wonder
why this is not an award winner or has not been turned into a movie. (Nathan
Vasquez, Minturn Middle School, Minturn, CO) |
