The Three Pigs
A Review by Amanda Kendall
Bibliography:
Wiesner, David. 2001. The Three Pigs. New York: Clarion Books. 0618007016
Plot Summary:
It begins as a traditional "Once upon a time..." story that takes an unexpected turn. The three little pigs venture out into the world and build their houses, however, when the wolf attempts to blow down the first Little Pig's house, the pig is literally blown out of the traditional story. Finding safety outside his story's pages, Little Pig coaxes the two other pigs to join him. Before long, the brothers are on a choose-your-own adventure between many classic stories and make friends with a dragon and a fiddling cat along the way. When they finally decide to return home, they bring their new friends along to live happily ever after in a most surprising way.
Analysis:
David Wiesner has a gift for crafting unique and imaginative stories that will stay with readers. The Three Pigs includes many of the classic elements of the quintessential western tale, while adding something unusual and fresh. The wolf cries his famous "I'll huff and I'll puff and I'll blow your house in!" while the Little Pig responds in a more casual tone through speech bubbles. This playful back and forth of two vastly different narrative styles develops both character and plot perfectly throughout the story.
Wiesner's illustrations capture the lively mood of the book. The stylistic changes of the pigs as they go between stories is particularly notable, morphing from cartoons to realistic drawings and back again. The large amounts of white space on selective pages show the pigs frolicking among story pages thus allowing readers to experience their joy as they travel between stories. Every minute detail has been considered to give the reader a feeling of full immersion when reading this wildly fun variant of a classic tale.
Wiesner's illustrations capture the lively mood of the book. The stylistic changes of the pigs as they go between stories is particularly notable, morphing from cartoons to realistic drawings and back again. The large amounts of white space on selective pages show the pigs frolicking among story pages thus allowing readers to experience their joy as they travel between stories. Every minute detail has been considered to give the reader a feeling of full immersion when reading this wildly fun variant of a classic tale.
Awards & Reviews:
From Kirkus: "With this inventive retelling, Caldecott Medalist Wiesner (Tuesday, 1991) plays with literary conventions in a manner not seen since Scieszka’s The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales (1993)."
From The New York Times: “Wiesner’s dialogue and illustrations are clever, whimsical and sophisticated.”
- 2002 Caldecott Medal
From Kirkus: "With this inventive retelling, Caldecott Medalist Wiesner (Tuesday, 1991) plays with literary conventions in a manner not seen since Scieszka’s The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales (1993)."
From The New York Times: “Wiesner’s dialogue and illustrations are clever, whimsical and sophisticated.”
Connections:
More Award Winners from David Wiesner:
More Award Winners from David Wiesner:
- Flotsam. 0618194576
- Tuesday. 0395551137
- Sector 7. 0395746566
- Free Fall. 068810990X
- Mr. Wuffles! 0618756612
- Scieszka, Jon. The True Story of the Three Little Pigs. 0140544518
- Trivizas, Eugene and Oxenbury, Helen. The Three Little Wolves and the Big Bad Pig. 068981528X
- Teague, Mark. The Three Little Pigs and the Somewhat Bad Wolf. 1338157744
- Read several variations of The Three Little Pigs and have students compare and contrast the different versions.
- Write your own version of a traditional tale with a twist (i.e. The Three Little Ducks or The Three Little Bunnies)
- Put the wolf on trial in a classroom mock trial. Students use text evidence to convince a jury of the wolf's crimes. For more fun, use different versions of the tale to change to change the facts and perceptions around the characters.
