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I have grouped all these in together (titles and ISBNs to follow) as they are all a joy to read for any age group. Michael Bond (creator of Paddington Bear) has brought this little guinea pig to life - Olga da Polga is an absolutely delightful character. She's a self-important little guinea pig, always busy with some new scheme or flight of fancy. Not only does she keep her owners, the Sawdust family busy, but she also bemuses her fellow animal friends with her antics and tall tales. The stories are well written and are charming and funny to read. The care information within them is a bit outdated (the first book was originally printed in 1971 so no surprises there!) although it does get better in later books, but several of the books on this page aren't great from that perspective and nor should they really have to be although it would be a bonus! Very highly recommended! The Titles In This Series Are - The Tales of Olga da Polga (ISBN 0-19-275130-1) Olga Meets Her Match (ISBN 0-19-275132-8) Olga Carries On (ISBN 0-19-275131-X) Olga Takes Charge (ISBN 0-19-275133-6) Olga Moves House (ISBN 0-19-275129-8) Olga Follows Her Nose (pictured) (ISBN 0-19-275246-4) Buy the Olga da Polga Books at Amazon.co.uk. | ||||||||||||||||||
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The two books feature a guinea pig family; mum Mrs Gussie, and her five piglets. There are four girls who all get along pretty well, and then their brother Snuffler, who all the girls think is quite spoilt and greedy (although he can do no wrong in the eyes of his ‘mumsy’)! As they have their little adventures, the girls try to teach Snuffler a lesson and get him to stop being so naughty. But you know what they say about the best laid plans! These were great to read - very funny, and the illustrations were lovely. They are aimed at the younger reader - billed as being ideal for children who are just starting to read.
Buy Guinea Pigs on the Go at Amazon.co.uk (ISBN 0-00-675258-6). Buy Guinea Pigs go to Sea at Amazon.co.uk (ISBN 0-00-675038-9). | ||||||||||||||||||
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This is a lovely story about a girl called Judy with a very talented guinea pig called Jenius. Judy has been teaching Jenius all kinds of special tricks, and can't wait to show her clever pet off to everyone back at school. But when she takes him in, things don't go quite to plan! The best bits for me were the interactions between Jenius and his parents in the next door hutch, and Judy's diary entries about Jenius's progress during his training - well written and amusing. Ignore the bits about digestive biscuits and leads (I try so hard not to be picky about these things with fiction, but sometimes it's hard!), and this is a really enjoyable book for young children. Most people will know Dick King-Smith as he wrote 'Babe the Sheep-Pig' which was subsequently made in to the film 'Babe'.
Buy The Jenius at Amazon.co.uk. | ||||||||||||||||||
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Some very nice and amusing stories about a guinea pig called Hazel. Aside from Olga da Polga, this is the only book here that is written from the guinea pig's perspective, rather than the piggy being part of another story. I don't think this book would be as appealing to older children and adults as Olga da Polga, but the characterisation of Hazel and other featured piggers are well written it's a good, fun book!
Buy Hazel the Guinea Pig at Amazon.co.uk. | ||||||||||||||||||
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Mandy (whose parents run a veterinary practise) is asked by her friend Johnny, to look after his guinea pig Brandy and her new babies while he goes away to visit his gran. Unable to, Mandy is pleased when her friend Rachel offers to look after them, arranging keeping them in her garage. Rachel is keen to show her dad that she is responsible enough to own a pet, so also volunteers to help out at Mandy’s parents practise. But neither of these ventures go exactly to plan resulting in some tricky and dangerous situations for the animals. A really good story including some lessons on being a responsible pet owner. It has a nice happy ending too!
Buy Guinea Pigs in the Garage at Amazon.co.uk. | ||||||||||||||||||
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This is a good story with a nice happy ending. Mandy visits a farm with her father, who is a vet, and becomes especially attached to a heavily pregnant guinea pig called Chocky. Later that week, the farm is vandalised and many animals go missing including Chocky. The community pulls together to find the animals and repair the damage, but Mandy has one little girl in particular on her mind. As the story is about Chocky going missing, you'd be disappointed if you were expecting piggy involvement along the lines of Olga da Polga. The story is really more about the vandalism but it's an enjoyable read none the less.
Buy Guinea Pigs in the Greenhouse at Amazon.co.uk. | ||||||||||||||||||
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Written for slightly older childer than the others, this story is more complex and also darker. Several children from the Packet family go on holiday to France without their parents for the first time. Porky, Rose Packet's pet guinea pig, was supposed to be staying at home, but is brought along secretly by her. Their parents appoint a madmoiselle to escort them over to France. However, the madmoiselle is not quite as she seems. When some luggage gets mixed up, events take a dangerous turn for the children. Porky plays a fairly minor part in events but it's a good story, all the better for a guiinea pig being in it!
Buy A Packetful of Trouble at Amazon.co.uk. | ||||||||||||||||||
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This book, aimed at a much younger reader, tells the tale of a hamster called Pip and his relationship with a guinea pig called Pogo. Pip’s owner is moving house and somehow his cage gets left open resulting in an adventure in to the great outdooors. Pip discovers the world is full of danger for a little creature like a hamster. Pogo is nearby hoping to help, but can he protect Pip and how will Pip get back to his owner? A nice little story but we all know that in reality the hamster would probably attack the guinea pig so putting them together is not really a good plan!
Buy Pogo and Pip at Amazon.co.uk. | ||||||||||||||||||
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A nice and simple little story for very young children from the Thinkers range. The books in this series are designed to encourage thought and discussion on certain issues (in this case responsibility, trust, co operation, forgiveness) and as such, the boy getting a pet guinea pig is used to illustrate the point, rather than the piggy playing an active part in the story. The book is nicely illustrated.
Buy William and the Guinea Pig at Amazon.co.uk. | ||||||||||||||||||
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