Thank you, Angela Crider, for a lovely reflection on the illustrations!
Wiesner, D. (2001). The three pigs. New York: Clarion Books.
"Then I'll huff and I'll puff and I'll blow your house in..."
I absolutely could not get enough of this book, and the illustrations make the story. On the surface, it seems as though it is going to follow the traditional storyline, but the characters discover they can hop from story-to-story, taking on the looks of those illustrations. Wiesner had to use several artistic approaches to accomplish the feel that was needed to make this book come to life.
The
illustrations begin very cookie-cutter and cartoon-like with small
framed pictures. Things change, however, when the pigs begin to leave
the story. They become much more three-dimensional, and they are able to
see the framed images from an outside perspective. The
use of negative space, pages without words, and word balloons for what
the pigs are saying really bring the story to life and make the reader
feel as though they are on the pigs' journey.
The Three Pigs won
the 2002 Caldecott Medal and for good reason. For me, this book does
more than just tell a story. In a modern society where trend-setting is
encouraged, this book does just that. It reminds the reader that it is
okay to stand out and be different, even when everyone is expecting you
to fit in.
Big Questions:
Wiesner, D. (2001). The three pigs. New York: Clarion Books.
"Then I'll huff and I'll puff and I'll blow your house in..."
We all remember it. This is the classic story of the three little pigs. Or is it?
In this non-traditional take on the
classic story, David Wiesner tells the story of the three little pigs as
they would have it - from their point-of-view. Have you ever read the
story and wished the poor little pigs could miraculously escape the
wrath of the big bad wolf? This is precisely what happens as the pigs
literally escape from the story, discovering they can hop in and out of
various classic stories. Riding along on the paper airplane devised from
the pages of their own story, the three pigs visit other stories,
rescuing characters such as the infamous dragon getting ready to be
slain by the knight and the cat from "Hey, Diddle Diddle." These
characters are invited to come along on their adventure into the world
of stories.
I absolutely could not get enough of this book, and the illustrations make the story. On the surface, it seems as though it is going to follow the traditional storyline, but the characters discover they can hop from story-to-story, taking on the looks of those illustrations. Wiesner had to use several artistic approaches to accomplish the feel that was needed to make this book come to life.
The
illustrations begin very cookie-cutter and cartoon-like with small
framed pictures. Things change, however, when the pigs begin to leave
the story. They become much more three-dimensional, and they are able to
see the framed images from an outside perspective. The
use of negative space, pages without words, and word balloons for what
the pigs are saying really bring the story to life and make the reader
feel as though they are on the pigs' journey.
The Three Pigs won
the 2002 Caldecott Medal and for good reason. For me, this book does
more than just tell a story. In a modern society where trend-setting is
encouraged, this book does just that. It reminds the reader that it is
okay to stand out and be different, even when everyone is expecting you
to fit in. Big Questions:
- Why do you think it is important to step out of the box as the three pigs did?
- How do you think the other stories changed when the pigs rescued the characters such as the dragon?
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