THE PIG SCROLLS BY GRYLLUS THE PIG by Paul Shipton
Gryllus was once a man, a soldier on the ship with Odysseus. But when he and the famed hero wound up on Circe’s island Gryllus found himself transformed into a pig. Although the rest of his comrades were changed back when Circe was defeated, Gryllus chose to remain a pig, leading a fairly happy life of eating, sleeping, eating, and eating. But when his ability to speak is discovered, Gryllus finds himself abducted by traders and his wild adventures begin. After a brief career in show business, Gryllus winds up on a quest with a junior prophetess named Sybil and a grubby goat boy who speaks only in nonsense syllables. Sybil seems to believe that Gryllus and the goat boy (who Gryllus affectionately dubs “Bumscruff”) are the keys to saving the gods from captivity and preventing the world’s descent into chaos. But as their adventures get increasingly absurd and dangerous, Gryllus grows increasingly eager to give up on the whole “saving the world” business and instead start a quest for some delicious pie.
This book is incredibly silly and funny. There are lots of puns and Greek mythology-related humor that will be particularly accessible to readers who are interested in Greek mythology or the Percy Jackson books. There is some action and suspense in this story, but it is much heavier on the humor so not an exact read-alike for Rick Riordan—though some of the same readers may be interested. I’d recommend The Pig Scrolls to middle grade readers who like humorous books such as How to Train Your Dragon.
Susan the Librarian 