Independent Reading Level: Ages 7-10
Awards: Young Hoosier Book Award (Nominee — Picture Book — 1997)
BCCB Blue Ribbon Book (1993)
Pennsylvania Young Reader's Choice Award (Winner — Grades K-3 — 1996)
Grand Canyon Reader Award (Nominee — Picture Books — 1995)
Volunteer State Book Award (Nominee — Grades K-3 — 1996)
Washington Children's Choice Picture Book Award (Nominee — 1996)

Another great read-aloud with a wonderful twist and and all the joy of a familiar repeated refrain. Delightful warm-up for kids or grown ups before discussions of peaceful conflict resolution. ( )

This is yet another retelling of the three little pigs in yet another twisted format. I would gladly ad to a collection that includes the Scieszka, the Wiesner, and the many other fractured versions of this fairy tale. It included more modern building materials and methods of destruction and the protaganist and antagonists are reversed, but the real sounding point for me was that the ending was much friendlier and more permanent. After all, in the original, how long did the pigs intent to hole up the brick house, or in the other original, who wants to clean up after a wolf drops himself down a chimney to his own inevitable doom? ( )

Silly story that reverses the well loved three little pigs. The wolves are creative in their home building, the pig is equally crafty in his destruction. Actually, the pig is relentless in his desire to destroy the wolves -- is he jealous? does he have a thorn in his toe? did his mom not hug him enough? or is he just a bully? And this is why I had to knock off a star.

I have to wonder if this story takes place a generation or two after the pig community grew a bit too confident and proud after their success in beating the wolf. A case of the oppressed becoming the oppressor? There doesn't seem to be any real motivation for the pig to be going after the wolves in such a dramatic way. In the original story it makes sense -- the wolf is hungry, the pigs look yummy.

I'll read this to the kiddos, we'll laugh and have fun with it. But deep inside I will be wondering what is up with the pig. Maybe I'll challenge the kids to explain why the pig acts the way he does. ( )

Genre
Fractured fairy tales and folklore
Picture books for children
Tone
Funny
Illustration
Detailed
Subject
Cleverness
Equality
House construction
Pigs
Wolves