Recent Reads - A Day No Pigs Would Die

A Day No Pigs Would Die, by Robert Newton Peck

Genre:   Coming of Age / Memoir

Why I Chose It:   It was required reading when I was in 6th grade, but it has remained one of my favorites. One of the books I keep on my shelf so I can pull it out and feel a certain way again.

Overview:   A Day No Pigs Would Die is a coming of age story about a Shaker boy growing up in rural Vermont in the 1920's. The story centers on Robert Peck, a 13 year old boy, and his relationship with his father Haven, a farmer and a butcher who slaughters hogs, as well as Robert's relationship with his pet pig Pinky.

My Take:  Reading is all about one's personal taste and not everyone will like the simple, barely educated, country narrative voice employed, but it is the voice of a young Robert Peck and he uses it to tell his story the best way he knows how.

I personally can't say enough how much I love this book. This book grabbed hold of something inside me 17 years ago and to this day I can recall the emotion that overwhelmed me while reading it. The emotion that, when I re-read it today, still slams me in the gut and makes me sob uncontrollably and unapologetically.

I recommend it to anyone who wants a heartfelt look at a father/son relationship seen through the eyes of a boy learning just how incredibly difficult it is to be a man.