''The Three Little Wolves and the Big Bad Pig'' is a children's

picture book A picture book combines visual and verbal narratives in a book format, most often aimed at young children. With the narrative told primarily through text, they are distinct from comics, which do so primarily through sequential images. The images ...

written by

Eugene Trivizas Eugene Trivizas (Greek: Eυγένιος Τριβιζάς; born 1946) is a Greek sociologist and writer of children's books. For his lasting contribution as a children's writer, Trivizas was a finalist for the biennial, international Hans Chri ...

(Evgenios Trivizas), illustrated by

Helen Oxenbury Helen Gillian Oxenbury (born 1938) is an English illustrator and writer of children's picture books. She lives in North London. She has twice won the annual Kate Greenaway Medal, the British librarians' award for illustration and been runner-up ...

, and first published by Heinemann in 1993. The story is a comically inverted version of the classic ''

Three Little Pigs "The Three Little Pigs" is a fable about three pigs who build three houses of different materials. A Big Bad Wolf blows down the first two pigs' houses which made of straw and sticks respectively, but is unable to destroy the third pig's house ...

'', a traditional

fable Fable is a literary genre: a succinct fictional story, in prose or verse, that features animals, legendary creatures, plants, inanimate objects, or forces of nature that are anthropomorphized, and that illustrates or leads to a particular mo ...

published in the 19th century. Oxenbury was highly commended runner-up for the annual

Kate Greenaway Medal The Kate Greenaway Medal is a British literary award that annually recognises "distinguished illustration in a book for children". It is conferred upon the illustrator by the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals (CILIP) ...

from the

Library Association The Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals, since 2017 branded CILIP: The library and information association (pronounced ), is a professional body for librarians, information specialists and knowledge management, knowle ...

, recognising the year's best children's book illustration by a

British subject The term "British subject" has several different meanings depending on the time period. Before 1949, it referred to almost all subjects of the British Empire (including the United Kingdom, Dominions, and colonies, but excluding protectorates ...

. The "Highly Commended" distinction was used 31 times in 29 years to 2002, including Oxenbury alone for 1993."Kate Greenaway Medal"
2007(?). Curriculum Lab. Elihu Burritt Library.

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. Retrieved 2012-07-19. In the U.S., where it was also published in 1993, ''The Three Little Wolves'' reached number two on the ''New York Times'' Best Seller list for

picture books A picture book combines visual and verbal narratives in a book format, most often aimed at young children. With the narrative told primarily through text, they are distinct from comics, which do so primarily through sequential images. The images ...

. It was named an " ALA Notable Book" and a "''

School Library Journal ''School Library Journal'' (''SLJ'') is an American monthly magazine containing reviews and other articles for school librarians, media specialists, and public librarians who work with young people. Articles cover a wide variety of topics, with ...

'' Best Book", and it won the " Parents' Choice Gold Award".

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participating libraries report holding editions in 15 languages of translation. ''

Publishers Weekly ''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of B ...

'' concluded its review: "Trivizas laces the text with funny, clever touches, from an ensemble of animals who obligingly donate whatever building materials the wolves require, to the wolves' penultimate, armor-plated residence replete with a "video entrance phone" over which the pig can relay his formulaic threats. Oxenbury's watercolors capture the story's broad humor and add a wealth of supplementary details, with exquisite renderings of the wolves' comic temerity and the pig's bellicose stances. Among the wittiest fractured fairytales around"."The Three Little Wolves and the Big Bad Pig"
Bookseller display.

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. Retrieved 2012-12-06. This includes (reprints) a Book Description (1997) and reviews by ''Publishers Weekly'' (1993) and ''School Library Journal'' (1997).

Plot

The story features three anthropomorphic wolves who build four houses using different types of materials: bricks, concrete, steel, and flowers. A big bad pig tries to destroy the houses made of bricks, concrete, and steel by huffing and puffing, but fails, so he finds a way to destroy those houses by using a

sledgehammer A sledgehammer is a tool with a large, flat, often metal head, attached to a long handle. The long handle combined with a heavy head allows the sledgehammer to gather momentum during a swing and apply a large force compared to hammers designed t ...

for the bricks, a

pneumatic drill A pneumatic drill may refer to a: *Jackhammer, a tool used to break up rock and pavement *Drill A drill is a tool used for making round holes or driving fasteners. It is fitted with a bit, either a drill or driver chuck. Hand-operated types ...

for the concrete, and

dynamite Dynamite is an explosive made of nitroglycerin, sorbents (such as powdered shells or clay), and Stabilizer (chemistry), stabilizers. It was invented by the Swedish people, Swedish chemist and engineer Alfred Nobel in Geesthacht, Northern Germa ...

for the steel. However, when the pig tries to blow down the flower house, he smells the fragrant flowers, and has a change of heart. The pig then becomes a good pig, and he and the wolves live happily ever after as friends.

Publication history

* ISBN (hardcover, publ. Heinemann Young Books) * (hardcover, publ. Margaret K. McElderry, first U.S. edition, 1993) * (softcover, publ. Scholastic, reprint 1994) * (softcover, publ.

Aladdin Books Aladdin Paperbacks is one of several Children's literature, children's-book imprint (trade name), imprints owned by Simon & Schuster. It was established by Jean E. Karl at Atheneum Books where she was the founding director of the children's depar ...

, reprint 1997)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Three Little Wolves and the Big Bad Pig, The 1993 children's books British children's books British picture books Greek children's books Parody books Fairy tale parodies Picture books based on fairy tales Works based on The Three Little Pigs Books about pigs Books about wolves Heinemann (publisher) books

Plot

Publication history

See also

References