The Three Horrid Little Pigs by Liz Pichon

Pichon, Liz. THE THREE HORRID LITTLE PIGS. Wilton, CT: Tiger Tales, 2008. ISBN-13: 978-1589250772.

Plot Summary

In this new take on a traditional folk tale, the three little pigs are the bad guys. Their mother kicks them out of the house for being naughty little pigs. The first pig tries to build a house out of straw, but it is quickly eaten by cows. The second pig makes himself a home out of twigs, but angry birds rip it apart. The third pig overtakes a rooster’s house for his own home, but the rooster pecks him right out. As opposed to the traditional telling, the wolf is the nice character. The pigs, having no place to go, sneak into the wolf’s house. While readers see the wolf with a big pot on the stove, in the end he offers the pigs soup and helps them to make a big house out of bricks. In this house, the pigs, cows, birds and roosters all have enough space for all to move in.

Critical Analysis

The sweet wolf spends the entire book trying to help the pigs out as much as possible. He is seen in the background of the picture on almost every page with a hardhat and a tool belt, trying to assist the naughty pigs. When the pigs are not nice to him, he mutters things under his breath like, “How rude!” The wolf is nothing but considerate the entire time, turning the known story of the three pigs and the mean wolf on its ear. The font used throughout the story really joins the text to the illustrations. For instance, the words swirl around the page when the pigs say they will huff and puff to overtake someone else’s home.

The facial expressions on the pigs really lend credit to how mean they are to others. They look like nasty little pigs that deserved to be kicked out of their house. The wolf, on the other hand, has a kind and helpful face which leads to his willingness to help the pigs, despite how many times they turned their backs to his help along the way. The illustrations are bright and colorful and well animated which help move the story along. This innovative take on a classic folk tale is funny and well worth the read. The pictures give an updated feel to the book and make it engaging to children and adults alike.

Review Excerpts

School Library Journal: “If you think you can't jam another twist on a classic tale into your collection, think again. Three pesky porcine protagonists are so bad that their mother kicks them out of the house. They are so lazy that they merely pile up sticks and straw for houses and one takes over a henhouse. The wolf is portrayed as a helpful handyman who offers to shore up their shoddy construction but is rebuffed each time. Rendered homeless by straw-eating cows, nesting birds that need sticks, and a pecking rooster who reclaims the henhouse, the homeless pigs get ready to head for the kindly wolf's abode. When he hears the pigs on the roof, he prepares a "big pot of boiling…soup" and invites them in. The tale ends with everyone living together happily ever after. The full-color cartoon illustrations capture the pigs' bad behavior and comeuppance with a goofy exuberance. The font size shrinks and enlarges to mirror the action and the text works as a fun read-aloud as well as a read-alone.”

Connections

· Read other versions of The Three Little Pigs and compare and contrast the pigs and the wolf. Who are bad and good in each? Does the outcome change at the end of each story? Consider looking at: The Three Little Pigs by Steven Kellogg, The Three Little Wolves and the Big Bad Pig by Eugene Trivizas and Alaska’s Three Pigs by Arlene Laverde.

· Art Project: Have the kids use various materials to build their own pig houses (i.e. toothpicks, straws, etc.) Find out which ones hold up the best through a strong wind. Discuss what makes the sturdiest house.

Rumpelstiltskin by Paul O. Zelinsky

Zelinsky, Paul O.RUMPELSTILTSKIN. New York City: Dutton Children’s Books, 1986. ISBN 0-525-44265-0.


Plot Summary

In the retelling of the classic fairy tale, Zelinsky tells the story of a miller who sends his daughter to the king, telling him she can spin straw into gold. The daughter is told she would be killed if she couldn’t produce the gold overnight. She cries until a little man comes in and tells her he can spin the straw into gold for her in exchange for her necklace. The greedy king brings in more straw the next night and wants even more gold. Again, the little man does this task for a fee. When the king finally asks for an entire room of straw to be turned into gold, he promises the girl she will become the queen if she completes the task. She cries and again the little man appears. He says he will again spin the gold, but this time he asks for her firstborn child in exchange for his services. Over a year later, she is queen and the little man comes to collect on their agreement. He tells her he will give her three days to figure out the little man’s name or else she will still have to give up her child. The queen has her servants help her and one servant lady finds the little man in the mountains where she overhears him speaking his own name to himself. She tells the queen the man’s name so she is prepared when he returns to collect. At the end of the story, the queen gets to keep her child as she called the little man by name – Rumpelstiltskin.


Critical Analysis

The illustrations in the book are dreamlike, much in the vein of a fairy tale. There is a golden hue that seems to be over the entire book, adding to the story’s theme of spinning the straw into gold.

The character of Rumpelstiltskin looks nice in the beginning when he is offering to help the young girl the first time. The more straw there is to turn into gold and the more he asks for from the girl, the more devious he becomes. At the beginning of the book, he is looking down and appears to be just a helpful man. As he grows meaner, he looks up more and more. By the time he asks for the future queen’s unborn child, his face is turned upward and his nose is very pointy. The facial features on the queen are also quite detailed throughout the book. The updated remake of this classic story is nicely done, telling the same riveting story with beautiful illustrations.


Awards and Review Excerpts

1987 Caldecott Honor Book, Redbook Award, Society of Illustrators and AIGA Certificates of Merit, Bratislava Biennale Selection, ALA Notable Book, SLJ Best Book, Parents' Choice Award, Book-of-the-Month Club selection, and White Raven Book selection of the International Youth Library.

Publishers Weekly: “ One of the most exquisite picture books of the season, Zelinsky's Rumplestiltskin will have strong appeal for children and for adult picture-book collectors alike…Here Zelinsky has retold the narrative himself; he has captured the magic and frightening wonder of the tale while incorporating elements from a number of 19th century Grimm versions. The spare story flows beautifully, and the illustrations are extraordinary. Incredibly detailed full-color paintings show the influence of careful study of styles and techniques of European portrait and landscape painters. In Hansel and Gretel, the tale's dark side was communicated principally through Zelinsky's depiction of a powerful and frightening background. But here the interior scenesheaps and heaps of straw, and baskets of empty spindles, with rooms suddenly full of golden threadcarry the story. The little man Rumplestiltskin is by turns mysterious, comforting, devious, furious and pathetic. And Zelinsky shows dramatically the love that the miller's daughter has for her child, and the terror she feels when she realizes she may have to give him up. Rumplestiltskin is a tour de force by an immensely talented artist. Zelinsky is that rare practitioner who can create sophisticated work that adults will marvel at, and that children will joyfully embrace.”


Connections
· Read Zelinsky’s other fairy tales: Hansel and Gretel and Rapunzel
· Look at other tellings of Rumpelstiltskin: Paul Galdone, Nick and Claire Page, Teodora Sirko and the original Brother’s Grimm version. How are these versions different?

Blackbeard’s Last Fight by Eric A. Kimmel

Bibliography

Kimmel, Eric A. BLACKBEARD’S LAST FIGHT. New York City: Farrar, Strauss and Giroux, 2006. ISBN-13: 978-0-374-30780-6.


Plot Summary

In Kimmel’s imaginative book, he explores the legend of Blackbeard, the most feared pirate. Kimmel introduces Jeremy Hobbs, a young boy, who assists Lt. Robert Maynard of the Royal Navy on a visit to Virginia’s Governor Spotswood. The governor was looking for a brace man who could lead his sailors out and wipe the pirates out of their waters. These pirates include the villainous Blackbeard. Maynard is selected to lead men into the battle on the high seas and Jeremy continues to be Maynard’s youngest shipmate. When Maynard’s ship meets Blackbeard and his men, the battle ensues with men going overboard. Blackbeard tells his men to clear out Jeremy’s ship – a fight to the death! Blackbeard sees Jeremy and tells him to hide inside the ship because Blackbeard fights men, not children. Jeremy ends up proving his true worth to Maynard by hitting Blackbeard when he looked to the men on the ship for the fight.


Critical Analysis

The story shows that children can be strong and courageous, even when others think they are just a child. Jeremy shows his fearlessness to help defeat Blackbeard even thought he’d heard stories about Blackbeard’s good deeds. This shows children that courage is an important characteristic to have and even someone young can possess.

The illustrations, done by Leonard Everett Fisher, are dream-like which allow readers to feel like a part of the fairy tale that was the story of Blackbeard. The drawings of Blackbeard make him look terrifying without overtly doing so. For example, he is described as having hair that is on fire at the bottom which you can clearly see in the pictures. He isn’t so scary, however, that it’s hard to look at. The fight at sea was well done with the bodies flying into the ocean, but not being too scary for younger readers.


Review Excerpts

Publisher’s Weekly: “Hoarders of pirate lore will appreciate Blackbeard's Last Fight by Eric A. Kimmel, illus. by Leonard Everett Fisher, the team behind two other grand legends, The Hero Beowulf and Don Quixote and the Windmills. Author and artist create a fictional cabin boy who, off the coast of 1718 North Carolina, helps to capture and extinguish Blackbeard the pirate, whom Fisher portrays as menacing indeed.”

Connections

· Read the other books written and illustrated by Kimmel and Fisher: Rip Van Winkle’s Return and The Hero Beowulf.
· Have students write their own pirate stories, putting themselves in Jeremy’s shoes. How would the students show courage?
· Break students into groups to discuss what they would have done if they met Blackbeard.

The Man Who Walked Between Two Towers by Moridcai Gerstein

Bibliography

Gerstein, Mordicai. THE MAN WHO WALKED BETWEEN TWO TOWERS. Brookfield, CT: Roaring Book Press, 2003. ISBN 0-7613-2868-8.

Plot Summary

Phillipe Petit decides to walk between the two towers in New York City as they were being built. He said this was something he’d been waiting his whole life to do. This was not a crazy feat as he’d already walked between two pillars on top of Notre Dame Cathedral. After having his friends help him set up his high wire for this act, Phillipe begins his walk high above the city. After being caught, Phillipe is ordered by a judge to perform his high wire acts and feats of bravery for children in the park. The story expresses that while the towers are no longer standing, the memory of them and Phillipe’s acts still live on.

Critical Analysis

The story provides excitement and a daring individual who follows his dream to the top of the world. The story ends with a heartwarming reminder that Americans still remember the symbolism of the two towers as well as Phillipe’s great feat.

The fold out pages in the middle of the book when Phillipe begins to walk across the towers makes the wire he walks across much longer. This allows children to not only have a more interactive experience, but see the wire as a long distance. The building is drawn to show how high it truly was, the little specks of the city below Phillipe. The topography of the city below him spans out as it would appear from Phillipe’s perspective. The colors are muted to show nighttime while the bright blue colors with a huge blue sky are used when Phillipe’s action happens during the day. The drawings are sketch-like drawings that show age as this story is from decades ago. Gerstein’s dreamlike illustrations along with an interesting well-told story provide an uplifting story for children and adults alike.

Awards and Review Excerpts

2004 Caldecott Medal winner

From School Library Journal: “The pacing of the narrative is as masterful as the placement and quality of the oil-and-ink paintings. The interplay of a single sentence or view with a sequence of thoughts or panels builds to a riveting climax. A small, framed close-up of Petit's foot on the wire yields to two three-page foldouts of the walk. One captures his progress from above, the other from the perspective of a pedestrian. The vertiginous views paint the New York skyline in twinkling starlight and at breathtaking sunrise. Gerstein captures his subject's incredible determination, profound skill, and sheer joy. The final scene depicts transparent, cloud-filled skyscrapers, a man in their midst. With its graceful majesty and mythic overtones, this unique and uplifting book is at once a portrait of a larger-than-life individual and a memorial to the towers and the lives associated with them.”

Connections

• Have students describe something they have waited all their lives to do like Phillipe.
• Ask students if they have been to New York City and if they’ve seen where the World Trade Center towers were.
• Have students draw pictures and write stories of where they would walk across a wire. Would it be somewhere high? Somewhere highly populated?