The Truffle Hunter

by Inga Moore

Left behind in the forest by her disgusted owner because she is unable to find truffles, Martine the pig, while trying to find her way home, meets a handsome wild boar who teaches her all about this great woodland delicacy

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Nature, Animals

32 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1987

About the author

Inga Moore is a distinguished author and illustrator of children’s books whose illustrated titles include acclaimed versions of THE SECRET GARDEN and THE WIND IN THE WILLOWS. She lives in England.

Reviews

[Ellie Abrey · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story has beautiful illustrations and tells the story of a pig (Martine) who is sent to the woods, by a chef, to hunt for truffles. Martine is not successful at finding these truffles and soon finds herself abandoned by the chef, who now views her as useless. On her travels, Martine finds a wild Boar who teaches her the way of finding truffles. With this skill, Martine returns to her former master with the truffles she has found - but finds herself chained by him and is not able to share the truffles she has found. Eventually, Martine escapes to live happily in the woods with the wild boar she had met beforehand.

This is a good book to illustrate to children that even though they may not be accomplished at a particular task, they can still develop this ability and improve in the future.

[Isobel · Rating 4 out of 5]

The story is about a pig who is taught how to truffle hunt by a wild boar. The illustrations exquisite and very detailed. The book is detailed with beautiful illustrations of nature and the different seasons.

[Mbgirl · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loveliest animation of France I’ve seen in a kids book. Story is cute…

[Katelyn Aronson · Rating 5 out of 5]

A hotel nestled in an old French village...a cranky chef called César...a blue Citroën Deux Chevaux...an under-appreciated sow named "Martine"... ancient cave paintings...a dark and handsome stranger...and a lesson in digging up tasty tubers...

Can an English-language picture book be any "Frenchier" than Inga Moore's The Truffle Hunter ? Her words and pictures capture such a spirit of place that you'll be transported to the Perigord in the space of a story time. Like so many of Moore's timeless works, The Truffle Hunter is still in print today. My hope is that we keep it that way for the next generation.

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gorgeous art. I read an archived copy on OpenLibrary.org but recommend to you a paper copy from the library if you can find it. The story is a little long for preschoolers; it's one of those picture-books for older children. I would have treasured it so much when I was about 8 and feeling the first urges to fledge for freedom (though my home was much nicer than Martine's).

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is utterly charming. Pig doesn't know how to find truffles in forest, but she finds her true love who, in fact, shows her how to find truffles. She had been abandoned in the forest, but finds her way back to the Chef and he gives her a last chance to find truffles for him. She is happy to please him, but eventually goes back to the forest and her love, Raoul.

Illustrations enhance the mood of the story so well, and are absolutely wonderful.

Bought at Reston Used Book Store when I went with "Olli Prep" group to celebrate our presentation being over! (Nov. 2016)