Books in Freddy Books series

The Overlook reissues of this classic series-with almost 150,000 hardcover copies sold-have brought these timeless adventures to a whole new generation eager for a good time and a good laugh. As a recent USA Today feature about the Freddy phenomenon noted, the Freddy books brilliantly illustrate the cardinal virtues: "fair play and a good sense of humor." In Freddy's Cousin Weedly, the irrepressible Freddy's cousin comes to Bean Farm, and what a timid soul he turns out to be. Jinx, the cat, decides to take charge of him, so as to help him get over his shyness and poor Weedly doesn't know what exciting events are about to occur. Does Weedly change? And what happens when Mr. and Mrs. Snedeker come to visit? Do they get what they came for?

Walter Brooks's Freddy the Pig first appeared in print in 1927, in To andAgain (later published as Freddy Goes to Florida). Devotees and acclaimsoon followed, as did the winning relationship between Brooks and illustrator Kurt Wiese. The result was twenty-six Freddy books in all, each accompanied by Wiese's vibrant and comic illustrations. As Brooks once said, "Kurt Wiese draws such very sympathetic pigs!" Celebrating the seventy-fifth anniversary is this delightful volume of Kurt Wiese's illustrations, capturing the incomparable Freddy in his many guises-as detective, poet, banker, and pilot, just to name a few! Here, too, are Freddy's adventures and misadventures, his human and barnyard friends and foes. Together with choice bits of Brooks's text, Kurt Wiese's illustrations capture the rollicking humor and dramatic spirit of Freddy's world. Included, too, are several exciting original Freddy illustrations-never before in print from the collection of Lee Secrest, former president of Friends of Freddy, and keeper of the Freddy archives. An introduction by Michael Cart, one of the foremost authorities on all things Freddy puts Kurt Wiese's life and art into context with Freddy and his creator, Walter Brooks.

Move over Stuart Little, there's a new mouse in town. Except this mouse is a hamster. And not just any hamster. He is a Mesocricetus auratus, a golden hamster of the highest order.Freddy is dissatisfied w/ his monotonous treadmill life at the pet store. He endures countless indignities in order to get himself adopted so he can lead a more civilized life. After a series of funny misadventures (including encounters w/ a fierce tomcat & 2 guinea pigs who speak in Shakespearean couplets) he teaches himself to read & write & pens a witty & heartwarming autobiography a/b his journey towards self-improvement. Written in jaunty, fast-paced prose w/ deadpan humor & hilarious plot turns, this brilliant novel & the irresistible Freddy will win your heart on the first page.

The Freddy the Pig books have long been considered classics of American children's literature and with each reissue by The Overlook Press, this wonderful pig is charming his way into the hearts of more and more readers. Freddy's Bean Farm is a frolicking place and Freddy-whether he's a pilot, cowboy, explorer, politician, or detective-will always save the day and be sure to have fun doing it. In Freddy Rides Again, Freddy-the porcine idol of people everywhere who love to laugh-gets it all started when he mixes it up with Mr. Elihu P. Margarine, a wealthy foxhunter who does not care a fig for the damaged vegetables he and his hunters leave in their wake. In the background, Henrietta the rooster chastises her husband Charles, "A fine mess you've got yourself into! You know where you'll end up, don't you? On a platter with a lot of dumplings, that's where!" With the help of Cy, the steed who taught Freddy to ride, Freddy rids the countryside of several menaces, including a rattlesnake and Elihu Margarine-making even Henrietta happy. It all makes for a stirring saga of a remarkably colorful pig and his steadfast barnyard compatriots.

In Freddy Goes Camping, Mr. Camphor's aunts, Minerva and Elmira, are staying with him, much to his disgust. "There's two kinds of aunts," he says. "There's the regular kind, and then there's the other kind. Mine are the other kind." He enlists Freddy's aid in an attempt to rid his house of the ladies, with the result that Freddy and his chums become entangled with some extremely unfriendly ghosts in an abandoned summer hotel. Freddy camps out, goes canoeing, and tosses flapjacks like a pro when he's not mixing it up with the eerie Mr. Eha…