Mercy Watson: #1-2 [Collection Volume I]

by Kate DiCamillo, Chris Van Dusen (Illustrator), Ron McLarty (Narrator)

#1: Mercy Watson to the Rescue; #2: Mercy Watson Goes For a Ride

Mercy Watson to the Rescue

To Mr. & Mrs. Watson, Mercy is not just a pig–she's a porcine wonder. And to the portly and good-natured Mercy, the Watson's are an excellent source of buttered toast, no to mention that buttery-toast feeling she gets when she snuggles in to bed with them. This is not, however so good for the Watsons' bed. BOOM! CRACK! Welcome to the wry and endearing world of Mercy Watson.

Mercy Watson Goes for a Ride

Mr. and Mrs. Watson's porcine wonder, Mercy, loves nothing more than a ride in the car. It takes a fair amount of nudging and bribing and a "You are such a good sport, darling" to get the portly pig out of the driver's seat, but once the convertible is on the road, Mercy loves the feel of the wind tickling her ears and the sun on her snout.

Genres: Audiobook, Childrens, Fiction, Juvenile, Humor

Audio CD

First published May 23, 2006

About the author

Kate DiCamillo, the newly named National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature for 2014–2015, says about stories, “When we read together, we connect. Together, we see the world. Together, we see one another.” Born in Philadelphia, the author lives in Minneapolis, where she faithfully writes two pages a day, five days a week.

Kate DiCamillo's own journey is something of a dream come true. After moving to Minnesota from Florida in her twenties, homesickness and a bitter winter helped inspire Because of Winn-Dixie - her first published novel, which, remarkably, became a runaway bestseller and snapped up a Newbery Honor. "After the Newbery committee called me, I spent the whole day walking into walls," she says. "I was stunned. And very, very happy."

Her second novel, The Tiger Rising, went on to become a National Book Award Finalist. Since then, the master storyteller has written for a wide range of ages, including two comical early-chapter-book series - Mercy Watson, which stars a "porcine wonder" with an obsession for buttered toast, and Bink & Gollie, which celebrates the tall and short of a marvelous friendship - as well as a luminous holiday picture book, Great Joy.

Her latest novel, Flora & Ulysses: The Illuminated Adventures, won the 2014 Newbery Medal. It was released in fall 2013 to great acclaim, including five starred reviews, and was an instant New York Times bestseller. Flora & Ulysses is a laugh-out-loud story filled with eccentric, endearing characters and featuring an exciting new format - a novel interspersed with comic-style graphic sequences and full-page illustrations, all rendered in black and white by up-and-coming artist K. G. Campbell. It was a 2013 Parents' Choice Gold Award Winner and was chosen by Amazon, Publishers Weekly, Kirkus Reviews, and Common Sense Media as a Best Book of the Year.

Reviews

[Holly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very cute little stories for young kids. My 8 year old son told me he thought the first story was so funny. There is nothing deep about these stories. In that sense, I wouldn't consider them among the author's best books. I mean, Because of Winn Dixie has a great story, with tons of heart, thematic development, and a wonderful message for kids. These stories are just lighthearted romps that tell an entertaining little story for younger kids, which I'm certain was the author's intent. I will probably pick up others in this series to read with my little ones.

[Lynn Davidson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mercy watson is an adored large pig who has crazy and amusing adventures, such as accidentally becoming the driver of a car. Her owners treat her as more than a pet and make sure she gets the buttered toast she loves.

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love when we find a children's book that is clever, entertaining and funny. This is an early reading chapter book. Perfect for reading aloud to my kindergartener. My third grader enjoyed it too and read the entire series in a day.

[Kendal · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. I thought these were cute stories. There were plenty of illustrations for my daughter to look at while I read aloud to her. She liked the stories, but didn’t love them. They’re a little short. I wish they were a little longer, but I’m sure they are intended for a young reader.

[Alexandra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read in audiobook format. A nice entertaining story that children will love. Children should really like Mercy the Pig being the main character. Pair this with a pig stuffed animal and you have a good gift for a child in your life.

[Kelly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Two quick stories of the adventures of Mercy Watson, pig wonder.

[Kathi Reeder · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fun, quick read-aloud with the kids. Really enjoyable.

[Shana · Rating 5 out of 5]

My son loved this series from book one. So great so funny and I can totally see him wanting to reread it.

[Ellen · Rating 4 out of 5]

The kids enjoyed listening to Mercy's shenanigans.

[Kimberly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute, short stories.

[Laurie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Down right cute. Readers will love the hijinks Mercy gets into. Great book for developing readers who are ready for a bigger vocabulary but still went to read about animals and silliness.

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not as much fun without kids. More juvenile than I think I would have read to my kids

[Myla · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is not bad of a book

[Alisha K Silva · Rating 5 out of 5]

Verry cute children's book. I pick it up at hunter public library today for a summer reading program. I like it.

[Brooke · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read for an event in a few weeks…

Love Kate DiCamillo ❤️

[Shally Ann · Rating 5 out of 5]

My thought is Mercy Watson and how she was a hero. I enjoyed it. I want to read more books in the future - written review by my 5 year old

[Tarin Shay]

perfect for toddlers! fun characters and exciting narration

[Kelli · Rating 5 out of 5]

"a hundred stars!!" - Lucy
"Mm, 3.2" - Graham
"cmon... we need higher than that..!" - Lucy

[Joseph Leskey · Rating 5 out of 5]

===================
My review of the series:
===================

This book is ridiculously humorous. Simply too good for this world, to stretch things into the realm of the untrue.

(Oh, look at that, it started to rain. Fun.)

All the characters are superb. And there being a pig in the series (in fact the series being about a pig) is astoundingly ingenious. I'll right off say that Kate DiCamillo is a natural at writing pigs. This is an expertly written pig. The humans are brilliantly fashioned as well. (Oh, its raining hard. I think I heard some thunder. More fun.) (Well, wouldn't you know it? The rain stopped.) Each individual has a distinctive hilarious quality or a quality that can be used to be distinctly hilarious.

Really, the whole thing just makes a person laugh.

But if you take away the comical aspect of the thing, is it destroyed? Well, it wouldn't exactly exist, but my point is, it is extraordinarily good writing. The very highest class of literature all in an "infinitely" amusing package.

The plots are relatively simple, but it is of no consequence for they work perfectly with this type of story.

So, if you want to experience the pinnacle of hilarity and all the virtues thereof and thereabout, I recommend that you read this, or far better, listen to this with the audiobooks that are read by Ron McLarty. He has reading Mercy Watson down to a fine art.

[Sara Truog · Rating 3 out of 5]

I recommend the Mercy Watson series on a regular basis, but I had never actually read them myself. Recently I was faced with a solo car trip and figured it was time to bite the bullet and figure out exactly what I was recommending... so I went on a binge and listened to five Mercy Watson books in one day. That's a lot of toast, let me tell you. The gist of these books is that Mercy is a pig who lives with the Watsons. She really likes toast "with a great deal of butter on it" and will go to great lengths to get it, which results in all kinds of adventures, involving her neighbors, firemen, a burglar, Animal Control Officer Francine Poulet, Halloween, driving a car and getting caught by the police, etc. These are cute, entertaining and easy to recommend to just about anyone - but I think I'd suggest the print version over the audio, as the illustrations are really a lot of fun.

[Jen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a review for the whole Mercy Watson series. If you're looking to start chapter books with your child, I recommend this series. They chapters are short and there are plenty of colored, amusing illustrations to help keep their interest. It was recommended by a kid's literature librarian, and after the first book, I wasn't entirely sold on it. I think they improve with each book, and my kids, especially the three-year old girl, love them.

[Cathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

After Mercy the pig snuggles to sleep with the Watsons, all three awaken with the bed teetering on the edge of a big hole in the floor. How in the world could a pig save them? Just the way any pig might!

I have seen my 2nd & 3rd graders enjoy this series, and today my 4 and 7 year olds loved it. They thought it was pretty funny. I thought it was simplistic, but fun. Short chapters makes for a very quick read.

[Abby Johnson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mercy Watson is a spunky pig owned by Mr. & Mrs. Watson. She's got a good heart and good intentions, but she is constantly getting into trouble. Luckily, things usually work out before Mr. & Mrs. Watson are even aware anything went wrong. Mercy is Curious George meets Dennis the Menace.

The audio recording was great and perfect family listening for families with small children.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

These are charming and I'm glad my solo car trip allowed me to finally get to start the series. The reader is good not great. But a beloved house pig (or "porcine wonder" - I cannot stop laughing about that) who likes hot, buttered toast and going for a drive? Sounds like what I want my future house to be like.

[Sheri S. · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was disappointed by this book after having read DiCamillo's "Because of Winn-Dixie." Mercy Watson is a pig who lives with a married couple who like to give her buttered toast. In one story, Mercy helps her owners to safety by (in a round about way) drawing the firemen to her home. In the other story, Mercy takes a ride with her male owner and a neighbor in the owner's car.

[Ashley · Rating 5 out of 5]

All of the Mercy Watson audio books are great fun, especially for pre-K listeners. I like the illustrations in the books, but I get more bored reading them than listening to them. What will that pig with a love of toast do next?

[Roxanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is such fun to listen to. Ron McLarty really does the voices beautifully, really bringing the characters to life, particularly Eugenia Lincoln and Officer Tomalello (my favorite minor characters). My daughter loves listening to Mercy Watson in the car. Highly recommended.

[Fionna · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was disappointed in this CD. The kids loved it, but I was expecting sooooooo much more!

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an adorable book! Mr. and Mrs. Watson think Mercy is amazing, a 'porcine wonder'. In these two stories, Mercy saves the day and enjoys lots of buttered toast.

[Lindsay · Rating 5 out of 5]

I LOVE PIGS!