''Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle'' is a series of children's books written by

Betty MacDonald Betty MacDonald (born Anne Elizabeth Campbell Bard; March 26, 1907 – February 7, 1958) was an American author who specialized in humorous autobiographical tales, and is best known for her book ''The Egg and I''. She also wrote the '' Mrs. Piggl ...

. The first book is ''Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle'', published in 1947; three sequels by MacDonald are ''Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle's Magic'', ''Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle's Farm'', and ''Hello, Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle'' (1949 to 1957). ''Happy Birthday, Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle'' (2007) was completed by her daughter Anne MacDonald Canham based on "notes for other stories among her mother's possessions". A 2016 spinoff series by Ann M. Martin and McDonald's great-granddaughter Annie Parnell featured Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle's great-niece, Missy Piggle-Wiggle.

Synopsis

The ''Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle'' series is about a small woman who lives in an upside-down house in a lively neighborhood inhabited mainly by children who have bad habits. Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle has a chest full of magical cures left to her by her deceased husband, Mr. Piggle-Wiggle, who was a

pirate Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence by ship or boat-borne attackers upon another ship or a coastal area, typically with the goal of stealing cargo and valuable goods, or taking hostages. Those who conduct acts of piracy are call ...

. In the first two books of the series, ''Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle'' (1947) and ''Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle's Magic'' (1949), Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle provides parents with cures for their children's bad habits. Cures range from the mundane (the "Won't-Pick-Up-Toys Cure", allowing a small boy to continue leaving his toys scattered about his room until the room becomes so cluttered that he is unable to escape) to the fantastic (the "Interrupting Cure", a special powder that is blown on the interrupter, which causes the person to become temporarily mute every time they try to interrupt someone). In the series' third book, ''Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle's Farm'' (1954), Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle sells her house in town and buys a farm, where with the assistance of a large assortment of animals she continues to help children overcome their bad habits. In this collection, Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle uses no magic for her cures; the farm itself does the most good. In the fourth book, ''Hello, Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle'' (1957) she has apparently returned to her original neighborhood and to her magical cures. No mention of the farm is made for the rest of the series. The ''Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle'' stories were based on bedtime stories MacDonald made up for her daughters, nephews, and nieces (and later grandchildren and grandnephews/-nieces). Some of the 151 children have the same names as members of the original audience (for example, there is a pair of brothers called Darsie and Bard). This explains some of the inconsistencies, such as Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle being either a good witch/fairy or just someone who understands child psychology better than most professors of the subject. The final book in the series, ''Happy Birthday, Mrs. Piggle Wiggle'' (2007), was published sixty years after the original, and is largely written by MacDonald's daughter, Anne MacDonald Canham (the two share a writing credit for this book). The first story in the book is an unpublished MacDonald story, while Anne explains in the book that the remaining stories are based on "notes for other stories among her mother's possessions." The first editions of ''Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle'' and ''Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle's Magic'' were illustrated by Richard Bennett and

Kurt Wiese Kurt Wiese (April 22, 1887 – May 27, 1974) was a German-born book illustrator, who wrote and illustrated 20 children's books and illustrated another 300 for other authors. Background Kurt Wiese was born on April 22, 1887, in Minden, Germa ...

respectively. Subsequent editions of ''Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle'', ''Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle's Magic'', and ''Hello, Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle'' were illustrated by

Hilary Knight Hilary Atwood Knight (born July 12, 1989) is an American ice hockey Forward (ice hockey), forward for PWHL Seattle of the Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL). She is also captain of the United States women's national ice hockey team. She ...

. ''Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle's Farm'' was illustrated by

Maurice Sendak Maurice Bernard Sendak (; June 10, 1928 – May 8, 2012) was an American author and illustrator of children's books. Born to Polish-Jewish parents, his childhood was impacted by the death of many of his family members during the Holocaust. Send ...

. ''Happy Birthday, Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle'' was illustrated by Alexandra Boiger.

Stories

In other media

*In 1990, a musical based on the books was created, '' The Magic Mrs. Piggle Wiggle''. *In 1994, the books were made into a TV series created by

Shelley Duvall Shelley Alexis Duvall (July 7, 1949 – July 11, 2024) was an American actress and producer. She is known for her distinctive screen presence, her portrayals of eccentric characters, and her later productions in children's programming. Her acco ...

and starring

Jean Stapleton Jean Stapleton (born Jeanne Murray; January 19, 1923 – May 31, 2013) was an American character actress of stage, television and film. Stapleton is best known for her portrayal of Edith Bunker, the perpetually optimistic and devoted wif ...

References

External links

* {{isfdb series , 42683 , Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle 1947 American novels 1947 children's books Book series introduced in 1947 American children's novels Series of children's books Children's fantasy novels