The Three Little Javelinas

by Susan Lowell, Jim Harris (Illustrator)

Overview

Into English ESL Library Level F/Grade 5 title

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780873585422
Publisher:	Cooper Square Publishing Llc
Publication date:	09/28/1992
Series:	Three Little Javelinas Series
Pages:	32
Sales rank:	14,027
Product dimensions:	9.46(w) x 11.04(h) x 0.39(d)
Age Range:	3 - 8 Years

Editorial Reviews

In this retelling of The Three Little Pigs set in the American Southwest, the cherished porkers are transformed into javelinas, the hairy, swinelike creatures also known as peccaries. Their pursuer, no longer the wolf of traditional lore, becomes Coyote, that ubiquitous Southwestern trickster. In her first book for children, Lowell spices the story with elements of Native American, Mexican and Old West culture. Javelina No. 1 builds his house of tumbleweed, while his brother relies on saguaro ribs. Twice Coyote huffs and puffs and the lightweight dwellings fall, but the peccaries are saved by their resourceful sister, who has had the foresight to build her home of stout adobe bricks. This clever and flavorful change of scene puts a diverting spin on an old favorite. Harris's lively, finely detailed illustrations, with the bristling, pink-nosed peccaries clad in cowboy outfits, amusingly contrast the villain's vigorous wiles with the title characters' cozy domesticity. Sprightly fun. Ages 3-8. (Sept.)

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

A zesty southwestern version of The Three Little Pigs. Javelinas (related to swine) are hairy beasties with pink snouts. The tale is told with gusto. "The big bad wolf" is Coyote, famous in Native American tales as a trickster. Coyote meets his match when he tangles with the 3rd javelina who is smart and the only female! Her house is built not out of tumbleweeds, or saguaro ribs, but adobe bricks! The western duds on the javelinas add humor to the pictures.

Children's Literature - Jan Lieberman

Most kids know the "Three Little Pigs", so try this Wild West version of an old fable. Scurrying from a tumbleweed shack to a saguro rib hut to an adobe brick house, three pint-sized wild pigs try to outwit a huffing, puffing big, bad coyote. Life lessons on preparation, teamwork and common sense make this a good reminder for intermediate students.

Children's Literature - Deborah Zink Roffino

In a southwestern version of "The Three Little Pigs," Coyote howls every night as he remembers how he landed in the wood stove of the wisest of three javelinas (not true pigs, but animals related to swine that are common to the Southwest). Lowell incorporates bits of the cultures and languages of the Southwest, but her version lacks the drama of the original story, and her explanatory notes intrude rather than enhance the tale. Harris' illustrations are appealing and humorous, however, and children who loved the original will enjoy this version.

Karen Hutt