Rusti

by Philip Pearce, Darcy Peters (Illustrator)

When 13-year-old Cody rescues a little pig, Rusti, whose mother can't care for her, he finds a friend for life. As Rusti grows, so does her curiosity. Every day brings a new adventure and sometimes a little-or a lot of-danger. Rusti and Cody's experiences will have you laughing out loud one minute and on the edge of your seat the next.

228 pages, Paperback

Published November 20, 2015

About the author

Philip grew up on his family’s farm in New Mexico, raising and exhibiting 4-H pig and lamb projects with his siblings. After high school, he moved to Texas to attend Texas A&M University where he earned a degree in Agricultural Economics and an MBA in Finance. Philip has lived more than forty years as a paraplegic wheelchair user after a fall from an oil service derrick as a college student rendered him paralyzed, but his disability has never dampened his zest for life or his spirit of endurance.

Today, Philip shares some of his experiences through writing and visiting with young people about challenges they may face in their own lives. He lives in Texas with his wife Karen where he is Gramps to four grandkids.

Reviews

[Shelbi · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book takes me back to some of the books I used to read on the bus in elementary school. Rusti is the story of a young pig and a boy name Cody who face various challenges together. Rusti is no ordinary pig. In fact, she gets to live in the yard with the dogs and cat. Cody has a soft spot for Rusti after raising her himself. It's a cute tale about love, friendship, morality, and growing up!

[Kate Matson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Summary:
Rusti is about a boy, Cody, who lives on a farm and raises farm animals for stock shows. He has plenty of pigs and lets the sows have litters and raises them for stock shows also. One day, one of his sows has a litter and can’t take care of one of the female piglets. So, Cody takes the female piglet and names her Rusti. He raises and cares for her like she was just an average day pet. Soon, she starts to think she actually is a pet! Later on in the story, Cody and Rusti become best friends and have many, many fun, exciting adventures.
Positive Elements:
Pearce uses a simple, unique writing style that I truly grew to love. It makes it easy and fun for young and old people to read. The story was so fun, I could hardly ever put the book down. Personally, I LOVE the setting in which Rusti takes place, a farm. Animals are one of my favorite things in the world, so I can really relate to this story.
Comments:
Rusti has reached my favorite book list, which is fairly hard to get to. I love this book, and I will definitely read this again someday. Hopefully, Pearce will write many more adventures of Cody and Rusti.