Customer Reviews

The Three Swingin' Pigs

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It's a gripping yet heartwarming story with memorable characters. The pictures are wonderfully wild, colorful, and expressive. The book captures the delight of making music.

Ella Fitzgerald once said, 'It don't mean a thing if it ain't got that swing.' This story has got it!

I was assigned to read a retelling of the three little pigs tale in one of my graduate classes this semester and I found this whilst perusing the aisles at my local library. "The Three Swingin' Pigs" is an excellent example of a fractured fairy tale. Here, the three pigs (two males and a female) are descendants of the pigs in the original tale. They are also musically talented with a penchant for jazzy beats. When the Big Bad Wolf hears about their fame, he is determined to settle an old score by devouring them. Trouble is, Wolfie has a soft spot for good music, and the rest of the story sees how the three little pigs outwit the Big Bad Wolf.

Vicky Rubin's prose has an infectious rhythm to it which makes this a great read-aloud. In addition,the vivid color illustrations by Rhode Montijo lend the three pigs unique characteristics, making them appealing which is nicely contrasted with the mean-looking Wolfie. My kindergartener loved this book when we read it together, tapping our feet to the rhythms in the book!

Satch, Mo and Ella are cool pigs, so when Wolfie shows up for the Big pig Gig ready to eat meat, they can smell him coming - and they have a plan. The wolf is the 'baddest cat to walk the land' and also has the baddest breath and no friends: can the swinging pigs teach him something? Large, colorful drawings by Rhode Montijo enhance a colorful tale.

With its musical rhythms, "The Three Swingin' Pigs" is given to reading aloud. Adults will appreciate the references to jazz and the appeal to musicality. Children will enjoy the sing song sounds, the distinctive, charming characters, and the fun silliness that pervades the story. This is a picture book both generations, parent and child, will savor.