Author/Illustrator: David Wiesner

Publisher and Year: Clarion Books, 2001

Number of Pages: 38

Genre: Fantasy/Fiction

Analysis: “The Three Pigs” is a book where Wiesner puts a weird but interesting twist on the typical “The Three Little Pigs” story by not only allowing the pigs to stand strong, but to move on into a whole different story. From there, they escape the big bad wolf along with a new friend. This book could function as a door into the imaginative world of the three pigs. An old tale that many of us grew up on now has a huge twist on it, opening up our eyes to the many possibilities. In the typical beginning of the story, the wolf has all of the power. Then, the pigs become powerful and essentially “create their own ending” to the story. The images align with my understanding of culture by allowing the pigs to go in and out of reality. They are also allowed to dip into another story and experience something from that and (literally) take something from it.

Perceptually, the words in this book sometimes contradict the images, but it works. The words are typical “The Three Little Pigs,” and dialog is used often.

Structurally, the pigs “come out” of story and “go into” another. They look realistic when they’re not in their story, and the pictures are framed when their classic story is being told. The pigs move in the right direction into the new story.

Similar to the original story, “The Three Pigs” shows us that bullies never prevail.