A pig in a four-star hotel in New York City? Only in Jimmy Buffett land. To say that I was disappointed in this book is an understatement. I guess I expected more parrot-head humor from the islands.

This story is told alternately from the point of view of Barley, the boy, and Rumpy, the pig, as a southern family moves to New York City, and takes their pot-bellied pig along. Of course, pigs are not on the approved pets list, and they are forced to keep Rumpy a secret. The knife-sharpening chef with a nose for pork on the hoof is hungry for the resident of the glass house on top of the high rise hotel. Meanwhile, Rumpy has an agenda of her own; she is pretty sure that her brother, Lukie, is somewhere in New York City, and she wants to find him.

This story idea, along with the photos of her pet pig, were presented to Jimmy for fleshing out by his friend, Helen Bransford. The kids and the pig frolic around the hotel and New York City in a series of outrageous events. It's a carefree, lighthearted story, supposedly based on true events, that the younger set would love.  It's good clean fun, but didn't satisfy my longing for what I have come to expect from this great writer.