The Three Little Pigs: An Architectural Tale [Hardcover]

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1, 2010 | Age Level: 4 and up | Grade Level: P and up

In this quirky, artsy retelling of “The Three Little Pigs,” the pigs and their homes are nods to three famous architects—Frank Gehry, Phillip Johnson, and Frank Lloyd Wright—and their signature homes. Each house is filled with clever details, including furnishings by the architects and their contemporaries. Of course, not all the houses are going to protect the pigs from the wolf’s huffing and puffing. Which one will? The wolf, and readers, are in for a clever surprise ending.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

As in Goldilocks and the Three Bears: A Tale Moderne (2000), Guarnaccia combines a delightfully fractured fairy tale with an ultrastylish, kid-friendly primer of twentieth-century design. Here, each of the three little pigs is a porcine doppelgänger for a world-famous architect: Frank Gehry (who lives in a house of scraps), Philip Johnson (whose house is glass), and Frank Lloyd Wright, whose sturdy, brick Fallingwater becomes the pigs' refuge from the wolf. The story works without the sophisticated references, but the endpapers, printed with design icons featured on the pages, provide a fun, interactive game and will pique kids' interest in the subject. Grades K-3. --Gillian Engberg

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Cute for kids, just as good for hip adults May 21, 2010

By M. Knapp

Format:Hardcover

The playful illustrations in this charming rendition of the three little pigs (THE THREE LITTLE PIGS: AN ARCHITECTURAL TALE) will catch a child's eye, but the witty attention to detail will best be appreciated by older readers, who will get the artsy "in" jokes and references. The little piggies live in houses endearingly similar to Fallingwater or in the style of a porcine Frank Gehry. Guarnaccia's hip "biker dude" wolf is hard to dislike, despite his intent to huff and puff and otherwise get to those piggies. This book takes the most familiar version of the three little pigs a step further -- the wolf made plans to meet the little piggies here and there after his "blow your house down" adventures were over.

I think kids will enjoy sitting in laps, looking at the bright illustrations and having this story read to them. This would also make a great off-beat gift for design-oriented high school and college graduates, and those with interests in the arts, architecture, design, home interiors --anyone with a sense of style, who enjoys visual cool.