The True Story of the Three Little Pigs

Genre: Traditional Literature

Scieszka, Jon. The True Story of the Three Little Pigs. New York City: Puffin, 1996.  ISBN: 0-14-054451-8



This is the story of the three little pigs told from the wolf’s perspective.  Alexander T. Wolf gives his account of what happened.  Wolf had a cold but wanted to bake a cake for his granny.  He ran out of sugar and went to ask his neighbor if he could borrow a cup of sugar. When he knocked on the door, he sneezed and the house fell apart.  He found the pig dead so he ate him because he hated wasting perfectly good food.  This continues as he goes to the second pig’s house.  The third pig, which lived in the brick house, was rude and commented about Wolf’s granny.  Wolf went crazy and when the pig called the cops, Wolf was arrested.  Wolf claims he was framed.

This story gives us a different view of how things happened in the story of the three little pigs.  Wolf just wants to borrow a cup of sugar.  He doesn’t come across as “big” and “bad” as the original tale leads us to believe.  He is a misunderstood character in this version of the story.  All three pigs are scared of him.  The third pig is quite rude.  It is only the behavior of the third pig that sends Wolf over the edge.  Scieszka writes this variation of the tale from anew and exciting point of view.  You should always try to look at situations from both sides.  He did a gerat job at showing Wolf's side of the story in a thought  provoking manner. 

Smith’s illustrations beautifully portray what is happening in the story.  Wolf’s innocence is captured in the artwork, and you can tell the third pig is mean and angry.  The illustrations help provide a guide to what is happening in the story.  the pictures bring life to the story.

SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL: “Lane Smith’s sepia-toned illustrations spring to life, with added animation and wonderful movement between scenes.”

PUBLISHERS WEEKLY: "A gaily newfangled version...designed with uncommon flair."

Awards received, according to www.goodreads.com:

* An ABBY Honor Book
* ALA Notable Children's Book
* A New York Times Best Book of the Year
* Association of Booksellers for Children Choice
* Silver Medal, Society of Illustrators
* Parenting's Reading-Magic Award
* Texas Bluebonnet Award Master List
* Publishers Weekly Top Selling Kids Books of all Time List

Many connections can be made throughout the story.  Discussions on misinterpretation and reactions can come from Wolf’s side of the story.  The pigs misinterpreted Wolf’s actions and reacted harshly.  Ordinal numbers, 1^st, 2^nd, and 3^rd, can be brought up as Wolf visits the pigs.  Weight comparisons can be made between straw, sticks, and bricks.  One of the most obvious connections is point of view.  This version is from the wolf’s point of view rather than the pigs or a narrator.  You can compare and contrast this story to that of the original tale.  This would also be a fun story to act out in a children’s reader theater.
Here is a list of a few of the variations that can be compared and looked at for cutural differences.
"The Three Cajun Little Pigs" by Berthe Amoss
"The Three Little Dassies" by Jan Brett
"The Three Little Bush Pigs" by Paul Dallimore
"The Three Little Gators" by Helen Ketteman
"The Three Little Tamales" by Susan Lowell
"The Three Little Wolves and the Big Bad Pig" by Eugene Trivizas
Check out this website for a list of more variations for the "Three Little Pigs" to do comparisons with.

http://www2.ferrum.edu/applit/bibs/tales/other3pigs.htm

The Frog Princess: A Tlingit Legend From Alaska

 

Kimmel, Eric A., and Rosanne Litzinger. The frog princess: a Tlingit legend from Alaska. New York: Holiday House, 2006.  ISBN 0-8234-1618-6

 

This is the story of a young maiden who finds her love in a frog.  She despises her suitors that her father brings to her and blatantly tells a suitor that she would rather marry a frog from the lake.  A “man” appears with bulging eyes and long fingers and walks her to the bottom of the lake to the Frog People.  Her father, frantic with worry, asks for her back.  She comes back unhappy and asks that she go back to her husband and children in the frog world.  She ends up happy with the frogs. 

Kimmel notes that this tale is based on “The Girl Who Was Taken by the Frog People” in a collection of myths by John E. Smelcer.  This story is based on a folk tale set in Alaska with the Tlingit (KLINK-it) tribe.  This tale reveals that love can be found in the strangest of places.  The daughter shows strength of mind by choosing her own husband rather than someone her father chooses for her.  Looking into the histories of the Tlingit people, her destiny is inevitable. 

The Tlingit nation is broken into two clans, the Ravens and the Eagles.  Litzinger tries to represent this through her artwork and illustrations.  She notes that the Tlingit people are representative of the Raven clan and are dressed in red, a color of significance. The frogs are representative of the Eagle clan. Ravens marry Eagles and Eagles marry Ravens.  She claims that she used yellow for the princess to show her unusualness. 

This tale can be compared to the Grimm tale The Frog Prince.  Kimmel’s words and Litzinger’s art work together to create a fascinating story about a clan in Alaska.  This is a tale of following your heart to find love. 

SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL: “Bright swaths of watercolors illuminate the landscapes and backgrounds.”

BOOKLIST: “The story (which may be too long for sharing at one sitting) is gracefully told, and preschoolers will enjoy the shape-shifting magic and cultural details, which are extended in the uncluttered paintings of villagers in Tlingit costume. Still, it's older children (and teens) who will relate most to the parental intolerance for boundary crossing: "It is unnatural for a human girl to live among frogs. They must marry their own kind and so must you." Suggest this for discussions with a wide age group.”

One connection that can be made through this tale is the daughter following her heart in love.  This reminds us that what we want may not necessarily be what others think is right for us.  The daughter may feel a loss of control due to her father’s overbearing personality on wanting her to marry a human even though she is more attracted to the Frog People. 

Other books on the Tlingit tribes include:

Smelcer, John E. A Cycle of Myths: Indian Myths from Southeast Alaska. Anchorage: Salmon Run Press, 1993.

Swanton, John R. Tlingit Myths and Texts. Bureau of American Ethnology, 1909.

Beck, Mary. Shamans and Kushtakas: North Coast Tales of the Supernatural. Anchorage: Alaska Northwest Books, 1991.

Beck, Mary. Heroes and Heroines in Tlingit-Haida Legend. Anchorage: Alaska Northwest Books, 1989.

All notes about the Tlingit tribes were taken from the author’s notes and the artist’s notes at the end of the book.

Rumpelstiltskin

Genre: Traditional Literature

Zelinksky, Paul O. Rumpelstiltskin. New York: Dutton Children's Books, 1986.

ISBN 0-525-44265-0

Zelinsky’s Rumpelstiltskin is a retelling of the Grimm fairy tale.  He based the story off of the second edition of Grimm’s 1819 publication of Children’s and Household Tales.  Rumpelstiltskin is the tale of a young miller’s daughter who is taken to the castle to spin gold for the king.  She receives help from a little man who asks for her firstborn child in return for his services.  She gives all she has to receive his help.  She has to resort to spying in order to figure a way out and save her child.  

The characters range from the scared girl to the greedy king.  The miller’s daughter shows fear and sadness through the predicament she is put in.  The girl was asked to spin the straw into gold because her father was bragging to the king.  She is grateful for the help from Rumpelstiltskin when he offers it.  Rumpelstiltskin is just using her to get what he wants.  Most of the tale takes place in the castle in rooms filled with straw.   As with most fairy tale stories, it does have a happy ending.  

Zelinsky maintains the tale’s integrity of earlier versions.  In his notes at the end of the story, he discusses the different editions of the Grimm Brothers original tale.  He does claim to add lines when he felt it was deemed necessary.  His illustrations add a visual context to the story.  He shows the girl’s sadness at not knowing how to spin the straw into gold.  You can see her surprise as Rumpelstiltskin helps her out.  You can also visualize other emotions through the pictures, such as the smugness of Rumpelstiltskin winning at his game.  Then you see his anger as the now queen figures out his name and ruins his game. 

Awards for Paul O. Zelinsky’s Rumpelstiltskin include:

1987 Caldecott Honor Book, Redbook Award, 

Society of Illustrators and AIGA Certificates of Merit, 

Bratislava Biennale Selection,  

ALA noteable book, 

SLJ best book, 

Parent’s Choice Award, 

Book-of-the-Month Club selection, 

White Raven Book selection of the International Youth Library.

This list can be found on Zelinsky’s website http://www.paulozelinsky.com/.  

This story would be great for a Reader’s Theater production.  It is a simple story with only a few characters. Costumes could be as simple as using different hats for each character.  Many other connections can be made when comparing to other variations of the story.  Discussions on emotions and reactions can be done as well as a discussion on helping others verses playing tricks.  This could lead into a discussion on right and wrong.  Was the miller's daughter doing the right thing?  Was Rumpelstiltskin?

A list of other variations can be found at http://www2.ferrum.edu/applit/bibs/tales/rump.htm.

The Invention of Hugo Cabret

Selznick, Brian.  2007.  The Invention of Hugo Cabret.  New York: Scholastic Press.  ISBN 978-1-428-73314-5

This is the story of young Hugo who discovers many secrets while working in a train station in Paris, France.  Hugo loses his father in a fire and is forced to live with his Uncle Claude who works the clocks in the train station.  Hugo has to steal in order to survive.  Papa Georges catches him stealing a toy mouse one day and then the story really begins to unfold. 

Hugo remembers stories his father used to tell him about an old movie and how a rocket got stuck in the eye of the man in the moon.  His father found an old automaton in the attic of the museum where he worked.  His father worked tirelessly to fix the mechanical man until the day he died in the fire at the museum. 

Hugo never forgot about the mechanical man his father would so often tell him about.  Hugo is forced to work for Papa Georges after he is caught stealing.  His father had given him a notebook filled with sketches of the mechanical man that Papa Georges, the owner of the toy store, took when he caught Hugo stealing. 

Hugo tries to run away from his drunken Uncle when he comes across the ruined remains of the museum where his father died trying to fix the automaton.  Hugo finds the mechanical man buried in the ruins.  He takes it back to his Uncle’s apartment at the train station.  Uncle Claude disappears and Hugo is left to fend for himself.  Over time, Hugo fixes the automaton.  He becomes friends with Isabell, Papa Georges’ goddaughter, and together they find out about the mechanical man and what he can do.  This is the end of Part 1.

Part 2 of the book continues the story of what happens after the automaton is fixed and Hugo and Isabell discover the picture that it drew.  They go on to discover that Isabell’s godfather was a famous film maker.  They work together to help Georges remember what it was like to be a magician and a movie maker. 

Selznick’s story is a fascinating one told through few words and hundreds of pictures.  As Hugo’s life unfolds before us, Selznick weaves a story of mystery around every corner.  I was completely taken in just through the illustrations.  At first you would think that a book with more than 500 pages would be a little daunting.  That is not the case with this book.  Selznick illustrates the story through more than 90% of the book.  His drawings are very detailed and really bring Hugo to life.  Every single image tells part of the story, detailing what is happening to Hugo as he struggles to survive and keep his secrets from the world.

http://theinventionofhugocabret.com/about_hugo_intro.htm

Selznick’s website for his book has links to the life of the real Georges Méliès, the toy store owner in the story.  He also provides his biography and many other items of interest.  Martin Scorsese is making a movie based on Selznick’s book. 

A list of awards include: (http://theinventionofhugocabret.com/about_brian_books.htm)

2008 Caldecott Medal
National Book Award Finalist
A New York Times Best Illustrated Book of 2007
A Publishers Weekly Best Book of 2007
2007 Quill Award Winner
2007 Borders Original Voices Finalist
2007 #1 Best Book for Kids from Barnes and Noble
Parenting Magazine "Mom–Tested Book of the Year"
Miami Herald Best Kids Book of 2007>
Rocky Mountain News Best Book of 2007
San Francisco Chronicle Best Book of 2007
Kansas City Star Top 100 Books of 2007
Columbus Dispatch Best Book of 2007
Los Angeles Times Favorite Children's Book of 2007
Kidsreads.com Best Book of 2007

This is a great story for children who are interested in the beginning of magic and the movies.  It is a fictionalized tale of a real man.  It discusses the struggles of survival as Hugo learns of his father’s death, and then his uncle disappearing.  It also discusses the hardships of friendships and what secrets can do to them.  I highly recommend reading other books by Brian Selznick.  His artwork and storytelling are creative and imaginative.  His newest book is called Wonder Struck and can be found at http://www.wonderstruckthebook.com/.  

Michelle