Three Pigs, One Wolf, and Seven Magic Shapes

Three Pigs, One Wolf, Seven Magic Shapes (level 3) (Scholastic Reader, Math)is an attempt to combine fairy tales with math. The story is a more brutal version of the three pigs than the ones I've previously read. Instead of sheltering with the other pigs, the wolf kills the first two pigs before giving up on the bricks building pig.

After summarizing the original tale, the author moves on to introducing a second chapter to the tale that combines math and a new set of pigs. In this second act, tangram animals appear to three new pigs. Each pig asks the tangram animal for help seeking its fortune. The pigs are each provided with seven tangram shapes and each pig creates something it feels will help. The first two pigs go the way of the pigs in the first act. However, the last pig follows the original third pig's plan building a tangram house, defeating the pig. The boy and girl surviving pigs marry and convert their tangram home into a boat for their honeymoon. The wolf sends them off on their honeymoon huffing and puffing in a last attempt to kill them.

The book provides information about tangrams and cardboard tangrams to cut out and experiment with for students who purchase the book. I borrowed the book from the library so that wasn't an option. Readers are also given activities and games to play with the tangram shapes.

There's a Wolf at the Door

I am always looking for new alternate fairy tales and I came across There's a Wolf at the Door while searching for another title.

This story includes five chapters of an ongoing graphic novel story. Each story is told from the wolf's perspective about hunting for food and his feelings about the characters he meets. There are no breaks in the stories, each continues where the last left off. The stories begin with The Three Little Pigs, continue with The Boy Who Cried Wolf, move on to Little Red Riding Hood, falls into the Wolf in Sheep's Clothing, and finishes with the Wolf and Seven Little Goslings.

This is not an apologist story. The wolf is honest about his intent to eat the other characters. However, he does have some interesting stories to tell about the other characters. My favorite is his story about how the vain Red Riding Hood becomes more thoughtful after her encounter with him. One of my favorite moments was the sheep rescuing the boy in The Boy Who Cried Wolf.

This is another great addition to my list of alternate fairy tales.

Tell the Truth B.B. Wolf

Tell the Truth, B.B. Wolfis the second of the B.B. Wolf stories by Judy Sierra.

While working at Saturday fix up day at the Villain Villa, the Big Bad Wolf is invited by the local librarian to come to the library and tell his side of the incident with the Three Little Pigs. His friends at the Villain Villa suggest he spin his involvement in the story. After all everyone likes a happy ending.

He starts his story with a song and comes up with some creative stories about how the houses came to be blown down. It turns out this is not really an open time for the wolf to tell his story. This is more of an intervention designed to make the wolf take responsibility for his actions. Pinocchio tells him his nose is growing longer and other fairy tale characters demand he tell the truth regarding his actions. The wolf finds it impossible to apologize with words, but does sing an apology. He also decides to change his middle name to Big Bodacious Benevolent Bookish Wolf.

With the help of his friends at Villain Villa, he redesigns the Pig's home as penance for his previous bad actions against them. Peace is created between Pigs and Wolf.

Three Little Cajun Pigs

Three Little Cajun Pigs has an interesting twist on an old tale. Along with adding the Cajun cultural flavor and language to the story, the wolf is gone. In his place, we have a very appropriate Claude the gator who knocks down the houses of straw and sticks.

I had never encountered a version of the tale without a wolf. Claude makes a believable alternative. The story ends with the pigs showing compassion to their foe and he survives the attack on the pigs.

Since so many students know the traditional tale, this would be a great way to shake things up a bit and introduce a new threat to the three pigs’ story.

Terrible Tales

Terrible Tales: The Absolutely, Positively, 100 Percent TRUE Stories of Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood, Those Three Greedy Pigs, Hairy Rapunzel, ... and Gretel as Told at the Beginning of Time is a humerous retelling of the listed tales.

In a forward, the "author" Sir Jasper Gowlings explains how he is compelled by elfin law to share the stories given to him by Feliccitatus Miserius.

As someone who enjoys alternate fairy tales I was surprised at the convincing case they made for Cinderella being mean and the story not getting out because the Prince was equally horrid and people were glad they found each other to torture. The anarchist three pigs were original. I have seen a variety of defenses made for the wolves, but that was a new one for me. Hansel and Gretel provide a very new twist on the old tale. I thought Red Riding Hood and Rapunzel were the weakest of the tales.

My suggestion with all these kinds of stories is preview before using with children. Everyone is different in what evaluating what material is comfortable for use with children. These stories are definitely focused on an older age group than normally read folk tales. I plan on picking up a copy of this book as a gift, but these books are not quite as child friendly as some of the other alternate fairy tales I have reviewed.