It's Not The Three Little Pigs - a review 11.02.22

Every year the second grade team does a unit on fairy tales and they always include It's Not Jack and the Beanstalk.  And every year, after they read that book, all of my Josh Funk titles are wiped from the shelf.  Luckily, I stock extra copies.  This year I'll have a new title for the series.

It's Not The Three Little Pigs

written by Josh Funk

illustrated by Edwardian Taylor

published by Two Lions

There are parts of the story that will feel very familiar: straw and stick houses, a wolf.  I always enjoy the detailed illustrations by Edwardian Taylor in each book of the series.  Wait until you see the blueprints for each house!  Just pouring over those took a lot of time!  And parts that will feel familiar to this particular series: a narrator who is interrupted a lot, colored talk bubbles for the characters, and a story that doesn't go quite as the traditional story goes.

For example, there is a fourth pig in the story.  Her name is Alison and she in particular enjoys interrupting the narrator!

Are you looking for a brick house?  A big, bad wolf?  Well, the story has some changes in store for those traditional parts.  I won't give anything away, but I will tell you I laughed through the entire book.

Some teaching ideas:

• these are must-have books for any fairy tale unit.  Have students search for the traditional elements of the fairy tale vs. what has been changed.
• do you teach quotations?  Take a portion of the story and rewrite it using proper punctuation for quotations.
• the blueprints for each house are perfect for some makerspace engineering ideas!
• check out the plot elements!  With the changes in the story, how does that change the plot?
• time to work on some fluency!  Thinking about each character's traits, how do you think the character would sound?  Act it out using expression!

This is a series that works perfectly for ELA, math, and science elements!  I'm excited to have this next installment for our library.

But don't take just my word for it!  Additional praise.....

“Those who love to make up their own stories will be inspired, and readers who march to the beats of their own drums will be delighted. Will leave readers as happy as a pig in mud.” ―Kirkus Reviews

More about author Josh Funk:

Like the characters in his books, Josh Funk doesn’t like being told how stories should go―so he writes his own. He is the author of a bunch of picture books, including My Pet Feet, illustrated by Billy Yong; the popular Lady Pancake & Sir French Toast series, illustrated by Brendan Kearney; How to Code a Sandcastle, illustrated by Sara Palacios; and Lost in the Library: A Story of Patience & Fortitude, illustrated by Stevie Lewis. He lives in New England with his wife and children. Learn more about him at www.joshfunkbooks.com and follow him on social media:

Facebook:  Josh Funk Books

Instagram: @joshfunkbooks

Twitter: @joshfunkbooks

More about illustrator Edwardian Taylor:

Edwardian Taylor is the illustrator of multiple children’s books, including Hey, You’re Not Santa!, written by Ethan T. Berlin; Goldibooks and the Wee Bear, written by Troy Wilson; the Toy Academy chapter books, written by Brian Lynch; and the It’s Not a Fairy Tale books, written by Josh Funk, among other titles. He lives in Texas with his partner and their three dogs. Learn more about him at www.edwardiantaylor.com and follow him on Tumblr, Instagram, and Twitter @edwardiantaylor.

More about Two Lions publishing:

Instagram: @amazonpublishing

Twitter: @AmazonPub

Thank you to Barbara at Blue Slip Media for the review copy!

Instagram: @blue_slip_media

Facebook: Blue Slip Media

Who wants a copy of this book?  Two Lions is offering a giveaway of TWO titles from Josh Funk’s It’s Not a Fairytale series:  It’s Not the Three Little Pigs and It’s Not Little Red Riding Hood  (U.S. and Canada addresses).  Winner will be selected on Wednesday, November 9th!