Freddy the Detective

Freddy the Pig #3

by Walter Rollin Brooks, Kurt Wiese (Illustrator)

There's trouble on the Bean farm. First a toy train disappears. Then Prinny the Dog's dinner is missing and Egbert the Rabbit is nowhere to be found. The animals of Bean Farm need a detective, and fast Luckily, Freddy the Pig is on the case. Having just finished reading Sherlock Holmes, Freddy and his partner Mrs. Wiggins the Cow set up a detective agency in the barn. But when Freddy's best friend Jinx the Cat is framed for a dastardly deed, all of Freddy's detecting skills are put to the test.

Genres: Fiction, Mystery, Childrens, Fantasy, Animals, Classics, Middle Grade

Hardcover

First published May 1, 1932

About the author

Walter Rollin Brooks (January 9, 1886 – August 17, 1958) was an American writer best remembered for his short stories and children's books, particularly those about Freddy the Pig and other anthropomorphic animal inhabitants of the "Bean farm" in upstate New York.

Born in Rome, New York, Brooks attended college at the University of Rochester and subsequently studied homeopathic medicine in New York City. He dropped out after two years, however, and returned to Rochester, where he married his first wife, Anne Shepard, in 1909. Brooks found employment with an advertising agency in Utica, and then "retired" in 1911, evidently because he came into a considerable inheritance. His retirement was not permanent: in 1917, he went to work for the American Red Cross and later did editorial work for several magazines, including The New Yorker.

In 1940, Brooks turned to his own writing for his full-time occupation. Walter married his second wife, Dorothy Collins, following the death of Anne in 1952.

The first works Brooks published were poems and short stories. His short story "Ed Takes the Pledge" about a talking horse was the basis for the 1960s television comedy series Mister Ed (credit for creating the characters is given in each episode to "Walter Brooks"). His most enduring works, however, are the 26 books he wrote about Freddy the Pig and his friends.
Source

Reviews

[Timothy Power · Rating 5 out of 5]

My first literary crush was on Freddy the Pig. He loves to sing and write poetry and while away the day in sweet, sweet contemplation of the finer points in life. But when a challenge arises, he always rises to the occasion with quick-thinking, resourcefulness, and a respect for his fellow creatures.

[Mandolin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reading this book hot on the tail of Tolstoy and the Purple Chair was just a confirmation of the magical pleasure that can be found in books. One minute, I can be sitting with Nina Sankovitch in her smelly purple chair, thinking deep thoughts about the meaning of life and the things that give it substance, and the next I can be snooping around Mr. Bean's farmyard with Freddy, Jinx the Cat and Mrs. Wiggins the cow, taking down Simon and his evil gang of rats and foiling burglars that knit their own mufflers! I may never have kids of my own to share these stories with, as my dad shared them with me, but I'll certainly be reading them to my nephews and nieces, as soon as they come along! Walter Brooks was a master of children's fiction and the Freddy books could certainly be called great literature, as I came to define it based on Sankovitch's book, for they hold gems of truth about life and humanity, hidden beneath humor, adorable characters and entertaining plots!

[Shadowdenizen · Rating 4 out of 5]

It may still be the rose-colored glasses...

But I'm still digging this re-read of one of my favorite series from my childhood.

It's interesting to see the subtle progression of the characters and the world they interact with.

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very funny. Love all the satire, and don't think it goes over children's heads, as I'm sure this series (what few books that I could find) was a primer for me to appreciate Animal Farm. I love how there are no super-villains... lots of bad guys, but they all have bits of 'humanity' in their characters. And the adventure is interesting, too, including the dramatic courtroom scene.

I really wish these were still read, and therefore still available... try them with your child and let me know if there's a chance that we could revive interest in them!

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

Re-read as audiobook.

[Bookworm · Rating 5 out of 5]

Freddy books were and are a great favorite with me; they bring back fond memories, while still retaining freshness and humor, and I will still be reading them when I'm ninety. :)

[Kailey (Luminous Libro) · Rating 4 out of 5]

A cute, old-fashioned children's story about Freddy, an intelligent pig, who reads about Sherlock Holmes and decides to become a detective. All the farmyard animals bring their little problems to Freddy, and he does some sleuthing to solve their mysteries. A little rabbit goes missing, someone steals a toy train, and a cat is wrongfully accused of murdering a crow, but Freddy is up to the task, looking for clues, and tracking down heartless criminals.

I enjoyed the charming old style of writing, and the simple story lines. The characters are sweet and funny, and they kept my interest. I liked how Freddy makes mistakes at first. He is not a very good detective to begin with, but he learns quickly and does a better job each time he tries.

Although this is the third book of a series, you don't have to read the series in order to be able to understand the story.

[Yibbie · Rating 4 out of 5]

In my personal opinion this is the best of all the Freddy stories. It has action, suspence, humor, and little mysteries sprinkled throughout. Of course, you must keep in mind that this all happens to a pig, a very clever one, but still that does occasionally hamper his investigations and is just one more added layer of entertainment. I loved it as a child and it held up surprisingly well for me as an adult as well.

[Luisa Knight · Rating 3 out of 5]

At face value, it's a simple and fun barnyard story about a pig that takes up detective work. There are silly, stereotypical characters such as the rooster, the cow, and the bandits who of course are dumb and wear masks the entire time. As the story progresses however, it gets into justice, prejudices, honesty and more; all great for a discussion afterwards.

Your kids will probably enjoy this way more than you, but you will appreciate their laughing at it and the underlying depth to the conclusion of the book.

Ages: 4 - 12

Cleanliness: the words "gosh" "goodness" "shut up" and the like are used in the book.

[Kate Chambers · Rating 5 out of 5]

my gateway drug into cozy mysteries

[Benjamin Thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

I nice return to my literary roots and one of my first favorite series as a young lad. I'm planning on reading more of these as soon as I can get some more in my own personal library.

[Czarny Pies · Rating 2 out of 5]

Freddy is a relic from what George Bush referred to as a kinder, gentler America. There are no split- homes in Brooks' world. Homophobia and racism are similarly absent. Freddy does not really have four legs. He is a white, anglo-saxon human child in the process of learning about the world of adult WASPs.
Although Freddy wears a deer-stalker hat and has read a Sherlock Holmes book, this novel is really a parody of the Hardy Boys novels which themselves are relics from a lost era.
At places I did enjoy my trip back to childhood. I particularly liked Charles the hen-pecked rooster. Unfortunately "Freddy the Pig" seems to lack the hooks needed to catch children in the 21st Century. I tried unsuccessfully with both my children to interest them in Freddy. My eldest son suggested that we try the French version after struggling with "Freddy the Pig" for an hour.

[Angie Thompson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Things I didn't realize when starting this book--

1) I was coming in in the middle of the series. Not a huge deal, but there were a number of references to things that had happened before that definitely let me know I was late to the party.

2) That we're not looking at animals operating independently from the human world--or even in a "normal animal" capacity alongside it. Even though the animals don't talk to the humans, there's quite a bit of unusual interaction going on. The animals (including pigs, rabbits, etc.) have free run of the house, help with kitchen and garden chores, etc. The humans are quite proud of their unusual animals--in fact, after Freddy sets up his detective agency, the sheriff comes out to consult with him on a case! So, some interesting suspension of disbelief, but rather funny when I got over the initial shock. :) Also, again, I'm coming in partway through, so I've missed any explanations/building up to this state of events that happened in the first two books.

Even with all that, though, I did enjoy this book. The unexpected consequences of Freddy's detective work--from inspiring copycats to having to create a justice system from scratch to an unusual crime wave--felt realistic and funny at the same time. Also, what started out seeming like a loose collection of different episodes and cases wrapped together nicely in the climax at the end. :)

3.5 stars

Content--some name calling and insults, including "stupid", etc.; several uses of "gosh"; an apparent animal "murder"

[Joyce M. Tice · Rating 5 out of 5]

I know I should be embarrassed that at my age I am reading Freddy the Pig. But, I enjoyed them so much when I was a kid and got interested again when I wanted my grandchildren to read them.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and the reunion with some of the friends of my childhood. What fun! Am starting another one right now!!! It's going to be hard to relinquish these books to my grandchildren. I guess I'll have to get them their own copies.

[Janae · Rating 4 out of 5]

Freddy is back with a new hobby, and it's one that he is accidentally good at sometimes.

After reading the adventures of Sherlock Holmes, Freddy is inspired to take up detective work. With the help of some of the other animals on the farm, he finds and captures some (human) robbers, solves a mystery to exonerate his friend, Jinx the cat, and chases an evil family of rats out of the barn with a guilty verdict in court.

Delightful, as usual.

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

My kids favorite Book so far in the Freddy the Pig series.

[Brian Koser · Rating 5 out of 5]

"American Winnie the Pooh" really is the best description: animal stories for children with winks at the grown-ups, a little less twee.

[Adrienne Organa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just as wonderful as I remember from childhood ❤️

[Ngọc · Rating 2 out of 5]

2,5 sao.
Vì mình thấy hơi chán.

[Rachel A]

Sometimes you just need to reread one of your childhood favorites 💚

[Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read-aloud with the kiddos! Very fun, but I'll never sound like John McDonough.

[Logan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quite good fun, and I like the little world the animals live in, where Mr and Mrs Bean and the Sheriff take them all seriously. I'm glad the animals finally decided that prison for every offense wasn't a very effective penal system :)

[Jake N · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read aloud with all the voices. So much fun.

[Rachel Tilly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another delightful Freddy book. These books bring such joy to those who read them! Freddy is so clever and I love getting to hear more about beloved characters like Mrs Wiggins. My 5 year old told me that I would be sad when this book ended and I was. As always, the narration by John McDonough is superb.

[Jeffrey Powanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

I spent countless hours during my middle school years reading nearly all the books my tiny school library had (every Newberry winner, Beverly Cleary, Hardy Boys, Sherlock Holmes, Roald Dahl, and so on). However, something was missing from my otherwise ideal childhood: No one ever introduced me to Walter R. Brooks's Freddy the Pig books.

The last book in the Freddy the Pig series was published two years before I was born, and the books quickly went out of print after that. I recently spotted the ebook edition for this third book in the series on sale for just $1.99, so I decided to give it a try. Any children's book series that endured for three-decades (the books were published from 1927 to 1958) must be good.

It's absolutely delightful. Set on the Bean Farm in central New York State, the story concerns a talking pig who's just finished reading The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, and he decides to set up his own detective agency, investigating the ordinary crimes that affect the animals of Bean Farm.

I fell in love with Brooks's animal characters (in addition to Freddy, there's Jinx the cat, Simon the rat, Mr. Wiggins the cow, Mrs. Winnick the rabbit and her son Egbert, Charles the rooster, and several others). Brooks's rich characterization makes the book emotionally engaging. It's also as funny as several Green Acres and Mr. Ed episodes (two of my favorite TV shows as a kid). Brooks's moral universe is as distinctive as other anthropomorphic children's classics, such as E.B. White's Charlotte's Web, George Orwell's Animal Farm, and A. A. Milne's Winnie the Pooh, but he's got a lighter touch, never preachy, melodramatic, or pedantic.

The ebook format worked for me, so I hope more ebook readers discover Brooks's wonderful series. However, the original illustrations by Kurt Wiese (such as this one) aren't included in the ebook, which is a shame.

Sadly, the bucolic charm of the Depression-era Bean Farm probably isn't much of a hook for today's fantasy-starved children. There are no flying broomsticks, magic spells, monstrous creatures, or diabolical villains in Brooks's world. Also no modern technology. But isn't a multi-talented talking pig enough? It was for me.

[phalangie]

DNF

[Donna Jo Atwood · Rating 4 out of 5]

Freddy the Pig has been reading Sherlock Holmes and knows that he, too, can apply his brain to solving mysteries. beginning with Farmer Bean's son's loss of a toy train Freddy becomes very efficient in the apprehension of criminals. In the end he not only solves the case of the murdered crow, but successfully acts as defense attorney for the falsely accused Jinx the cat. How often did Sherlock do that?
Used for task 30.2

[Christina · Rating 4 out of 5]

My son (5) and I listened to the audio version of this whilst driving around town for the past couple of weeks. The book itself was very fun, set up as a series of vignettes, but bound together by one over-arching storyline. The reading of the book was quite delightful, and we may just have to look into more of the Freddy books. As soon as we finished listening to it (all four cassettes!), my son asked for it again. We're now on our second time.

[Beth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Actually, I read The Freddy Anniversary Collection, three books in one: Freddy Goes to Florida; Freddy Goes to the North Pole, and Freddy the Detective. The three are the first of a series written between 1927 and 1958 about Freddy the Pig. With his farm animal companions, Freddy has various adventures all delightfully silly but not slapstick. This series was a favorite of one of my brothers. For me, a good old trot down memory lane.

[E.L. · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoy all the Freddy books, but this one is unquestionably my favorite. From Freddy disguising himself to catch the robbers, to the clever way he, Mrs Wiggins, and Jinx plot to trap the rats, to the trial of Jinx for murder, it's a thoroughly enjoyable romp from start to finish. Never were there such animals as the ones on the Bean farm, and Freddy is the cream of the crop!