Bibliography
Davis, Donald. 2004. The pig who went home on Sunday: an Appalachian folktale. Ill. by Jennifer Mazzucco. Little Rock, AK: August House Little Folk. ISBN 0-87483-571-2
Plot Summary
Three little pigs decide it's time to live on their own. Their mama tells each one "If you have to build a house, build it out of rocks and bricks. And please come home and see your mama on Sunday." Tommy and Willie don't listen to their mother and get eaten by a wolf - "Gulp!" Then the wolf tries to trick Jackie. Eventually Jackie is able to get rid of the pesky wolf and guess where Jackie goes that very next Sunday!
Critical analysis
In this Appalachian version of The Three Little Pigs, Davis chose to use the original cautionary tale where, if you don't listen to your mother, bad things will happen. Davis's storytelling uses the repetition we come to expect from this traditional tale. Although this variant on the Three Little Pigs is sweet ("Please come home and see your mama on Sunday"), Davis' handing of Jackie Pig is confused. First he has Jackie wisely not listen to the wolf, but then later, Jackie opens the door to the wolf and gradually lets the wolf in a little bit at a time ("It won't hurt just to let him get his nose warm.") I'm not sure what lesson Davis is trying to teach when Jackie opens the door to the bad wolf in the hopes that the fox will go home. In the back of the book, Davis explains the history of The Little Pigs and shares a family story.
Mazzucco's watercolor illustrations are bright and colorful, although not always particularly attractive. She excels with her Appalachian landscapes looking almost like a quilt - layer upon layer to build up a beautiful mountain view. However, while the pigs snouts may be physically accurate, they look odd. If your collection contains cautionary tales in which the Three Little Pigs are eaten, then this book will not be needed. I would only recommend this book if you are trying to acquire books with a different perspective to this common tale.
Review excerpt(s)
Kindergarten-Grade 4–This charming version of "The Three Little Pigs" weaves mountain wisdom into a readable story with just the right amount of repetition for sharing aloud...... An endnote relates an entertaining personal anecdote about the story and provides a brief explanation of its history. A fine addition to folktale collections.– School Library Journal
Most of us grew up with a version of this story. We probably called it "The Three Little Pigs," and if we grew up in the Disney generation, we probably remember the happy pigs dancing and singing at the end, gleeful about outsmarting the wolf. But this is an earlier, less sanitized version of this cautionary tale, and the little pigs who don't do what their mother told them to do and instead build their homes of corn stalks and hay, never make it to their brother's brick house to sing and dance. They have already been eaten by the fox. Some children, already used to the more modern version of the story, may object to this ending, insisting that this is not the way the story goes. But families who enjoy original folktales will undoubtedly like this version. The text is somewhat wordy and a bit flat and the illustrations, though colorful and lively, are not particularly attractive. Still many families will enjoy sharing this book. -- Children's Literature
.... In his variation on The Three Little Pigs, Davis spins a cautionary tale about heeding the words of grown-ups. The first two pigs pay the price of ignoring Mama's wisdom; the third chubby porker, Jackie, erects a solid home. At this point the plot line loses momentum as Jackie veers from savvy to gullible. He lets the fox into his home, inexplicably slamming the door on the animal's neck and tail, and only later realizes "he was the very thing the fox was planning to eat." Jackie does ultimately outfox his tricky stalker and makes it home for Sunday supper, but the uninflected writing and heavy-handed message, coupled with Mazzucco's (Little Johnny Buttermilk) flat illustrations in a muddy palette, may well have kids wishing for the classic's huffing and puffing wolf. - Publisher's Weekly
Most of us grew up with a version of this story. We probably called it "The Three Little Pigs," and if we grew up in the Disney generation, we probably remember the happy pigs dancing and singing at the end, gleeful about outsmarting the wolf. But this is an earlier, less sanitized version of this cautionary tale, and the little pigs who don't do what their mother told them to do and instead build their homes of corn stalks and hay, never make it to their brother's brick house to sing and dance. They have already been eaten by the fox. Some children, already used to the more modern version of the story, may object to this ending, insisting that this is not the way the story goes. But families who enjoy original folktales will undoubtedly like this version. The text is somewhat wordy and a bit flat and the illustrations, though colorful and lively, are not particularly attractive. Still many families will enjoy sharing this book. -- Children's Literature
.... In his variation on The Three Little Pigs, Davis spins a cautionary tale about heeding the words of grown-ups. The first two pigs pay the price of ignoring Mama's wisdom; the third chubby porker, Jackie, erects a solid home. At this point the plot line loses momentum as Jackie veers from savvy to gullible. He lets the fox into his home, inexplicably slamming the door on the animal's neck and tail, and only later realizes "he was the very thing the fox was planning to eat." Jackie does ultimately outfox his tricky stalker and makes it home for Sunday supper, but the uninflected writing and heavy-handed message, coupled with Mazzucco's (Little Johnny Buttermilk) flat illustrations in a muddy palette, may well have kids wishing for the classic's huffing and puffing wolf. - Publisher's Weekly
Connections
* Two of the pigs did not listen to their mother and they got eaten by the wolf. Ask children if they ever disobeyed their mother/parents and something bad happened to them. What happens if they don't listen to their parents and do something they are not supposed to do?
* The two pigs listened to a stranger instead of their mother. Talk to students about "stranger danger" and conduct "stranger danger role-playing." During this activity, a teacher plays the role of either a helpful or a dangerous stranger while the student plays himself. The teacher attempts to extract information from the student and gain his trust while the student responds by resisting and seeking the help of a trustworthy adult. (Whalig)
* Have students create a "safety web." Safety webs allow students to create personalized visuals about people they do and do not trust. Students begin by drawing a circle in the center of a large piece of construction paper. Inside the circle, they list the trusted people in their immediate family, like their mom, dad and siblings. The student then draws several lines coming out of the circle and connects them with lines, creating a web-like design. Inside each new web box, students write the names of trusted extended family members, family friends or teachers. Each additional layer of the web provides space for people the student trusts, including teachers or police officers. Provide students with cut-outs of spiders and ask them to write descriptions of dangerous people, like strangers in vans or unknown people claiming to be relatives, and add them to the webs. (Whalig)
* To learn about textures, strength and use of the materials mentioned in the story, bring in corn stalks (or husks), hay, stone, and bricks. Talk about the strength of each material and about their uses. Would a brick be able to cover a piece of corn from the rain? Would a brick feed a cow?
* When the fox says "Pork and beans for my supper!" the pig realizes that he's going to be eaten since he's pork. Talk to children about the original sources of food; for example, peanut butter comes from peanuts, milk and meat comes from cows, and so on. Have the students talk about their favorite foods and trace it back to the original source.
Wahlig, Hannah. Ehow. "Ideas for teaching about stranger danger." Web. Accessed on 18 June 2013. http://www.ehow.com/info_8308032_ideas-teaching-stranger-dangers.html
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