The wolf gives his own outlandish version of what really happened when he tangled with the three little pigs. - (Baker & Taylor)
The wolf gives his own outlandish version of what really happened when he tangled with the three little pigs - (Baker & Taylor)
THE MODERN CLASSIC WITH OVER TWO MILLION COPIES SOLD • The Big Bad Wolf tells his side in this fractured fairy tale, brought to life with irreverent storytelling and artwork that “older kids (and adults) will find very funny” (School Library Journal).
A New York Times Best Book of the Year • American Booksellers Association Picture Book Hall of Fame • Society of Illustrators Silver Medal • New York Public Library 100 Great Children’s Books for 100 Years • An American Library Association Notable Book
You may think you know the story of the Three Little Pigs and the Big Bad Wolf—but only one person knows the real story. That person is A. Wolf. His tale starts with a birthday cake for his dear old granny, a bad head cold . . . and a bad reputation. It ends in the Big House: the Pig Pen. What really happened when A. Wolf was at the door? Was it an historic pig out or a Mother Goose frame-up? You read it. You decide.
Jon Scieszka and Lane Smith combine their talents for droll tales and provocative reporting to bring the true story of this much maligned figure to the public. Big and Bad? Could be. Hilarious? Of course. - (Penguin Putnam)
A spoof on the three little pigs story, this time told from the wolf's point of view. Lane Smith also illustrated Hallowe'en ABC which was one of The New York Times Best Illustrated Books of the Year. - (Random House, Inc.)
Multiple award-winning author Jon Scieszka grew up in Flint, Michigan, the second oldest and the nicest of six boys. Jon went to school at Culver Military Academy in Indiana where he was a Lieutenant; Albion College in Michigan where he studied to be a doctor; and Columbia University in New York, where he received an M.F.A. in fiction. He taught elementary school in New York for ten years in a variety of positions. He is the author of many books for children including the New York Times Best Illustrated Book The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales (illustrated by Lane Smith), the Caldecott Honor book The True Story of the Three Little Pigs (illustrated by Lane Smith), and Math Curse (illustrated by Lane Smith). In addition to his work as an author, Jon also runs a web-based literacy program called “Guys Read” that is designed to encourage boys, particularly reluctant readers, to get involved with books. In 2008, Jon was named the country’s first National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature, a joint effort of the Library of Congress and the Children’s Book Council. During his two-year role as Ambassador, he acted as a spokesperson for children’s literature, speaking to groups of parents, teachers, and children to encourage the importance of reading. You can visit Jon online at www.jsworldwide.com. - (Penguin Putnam)
Publishers Weekly Reviews
In this gaily newfangled version of a classic tale, Scieszka and Smith ( Flying Jake ) argue in favor of the villain, transforming the story of the three little pigs into a playfully suspicious, rather arch account of innocence beleaguered. Quoth the wolf: ``I don't know how this whole Big Bad Wolf thing got started, but it's all wrong.'' According to his first-person testimony, the wolf went visiting the pigs in search of a neighborly cup of sugar; he implies that had the first two happened to build more durable homes and the third kept a civil tongue in his head, the wolf's helpless sneezes wouldn't have toppled them. As for his casual consumption of the pigs, the wolf defends it breezily (``It seemed like a shame to leave a perfectly good ham dinner lying there in the straw'') and claims cops and reporters ``framed'' him. Smith's highly imaginative watercolors eschew realism, further updating the tale, though some may find their urbane stylization and intentionally static quality mystifyingly adult. Designed with uncommon flair, this alternative fable is both fetching and glib. Ages 3-8. (Sept.) Copyright 1989 Cahners Business Information.
School Library Journal Reviews
Gr 1 Up--Victim for centuries of a bad press, Alexander (``You can call me Al'') T. Wolf steps forward at last to give his side of the story. Trying to borrow a cup of sugar to make a cake for his dear old Granny, Al calls on his neighbors--and can he help it if two of them built such shoddy houses? A couple of sneezes, a couple of dead pigs amidst the wreckage and, well, it would be shame to let those ham dinners spoil, wouldn't it? And when the pig in the brick house makes a nasty comment about Granny, isn't it only natural to get a little steamed? It's those reporters from the Daily Pig that made Al out to be Big and Bad, that caused him to be arrested and sent to the (wait for it) Pig Pen. ``I was framed,'' he concludes mournfully. Smith's dark tones and sometimes shadowy, indistinct shapes recall the distinctive illustrations he did for Merriam's Halloween ABC (Macmillan, 1987); the bespectacled wolf moves with a rather sinister bonelessness, and his juicy sneezes tear like thunderbolts through a dim, grainy world. It's the type of book that older kids (and adults) will find very funny.--John Peters, New York Public Library Copyright 1989 Cahners Business Information.
School Library Journal Reviews
K-Gr 5 --A new slant on an old, familiar tale. The much maligned A. Wolf tells his side of the story and offers benign explanations for his bad behavior. This translation retains the colorful language and sense of fun found in its English counterpart. Some of the vocabulary is regionalized and may not be universally understood by all Spanish-speaking children without adult clarification. The stylized watercolors with dark shadowing, clever use of perspective, and textured detail will appeal to audiences sophisticated enough to enjoy the tongue-in-cheek humor. Copyright 1991 Cahners Business Information.
