''The Three Pigs'' is a

children's A child () is a human being between the stages of birth and puberty, or between the developmental period of infancy and puberty. The term may also refer to an unborn human being. In English-speaking countries, the legal definition of ''child ...

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 ima ...

that was written and illustrated by David Wiesner. Published in 2001 by Houghton Mifflin/Clarion, the book is based on the traditional tale of the '' Three Little Pigs'', though in this story they step out of their own tale and wander into others, depicted in different illustration styles. Wiesner won the 2002

Caldecott Medal The Randolph Caldecott Medal, frequently shortened to just the Caldecott, annually recognizes the preceding year's "most distinguished American picture book for children". It is awarded to the illustrator by the Association for Library Service ...

for his illustrations, Wiesner's second of three such medals.American Library Association
Caldecott Medal Winners, 1938 - Present
URL accessed 27 May 2009.

Plot

The story starts with three pigs who decided to build a house. However, two of the three pigs love to play. The other is very responsible and hardworking. He advised the other two pigs to build a good house in case the wolf comes. The first pig, the laziest, made his house out of straw. The second pig, who is not very responsible made his house out of sticks because it was easier and faster. The third pig, who is hard-working made his house out of bricks. Therefore, the third one took longer to finish up his house and the other two made fun of him. According to Amazon Editorial Reviews, when the wolf approaches the first house and blows it in, he blows the pig right out of the story frame. One by one, the pigs exit the fairy tale's border and set off on an adventure of their own. Folding a page of their own story into a paper airplane, the pigs fly off to visit other storybooks, rescuing about-to-be-slain dragons and luring the cat and the fiddle out of their nursery rhyme.

Purposed film adaptation

In May 2002, it was reported that the book was optioned to

Walt Disney Feature Animation Walt Disney Animation Studios (WDAS), sometimes shortened to Disney Animation, is an American animation studio that produces animated feature films and short films for the Walt Disney Company. The studio's current production logo features a s ...

, and its development was announced in December 2003 as a 2D/3D animated hybrid film. However, the project was eventually taken off the schedule and was cancelled for unknown reasons.

References

2001 children's books American children's books American picture books Caldecott Medal–winning works Picture books based on fairy tales Children's books based on The Three Little Pigs Houghton Mifflin books {{child-picture-book-stub