What a wonderful tale which should evoke mixed emotions in the children. I would definitely put this one in the book corner for year 1 and 2 children. It relates a story of a poor farmer with his piglet Pigmella, sitting in cart on the straw resting in the courtyard of a castle. Above in the castle the queen was holding her new baby princess Priscilla who was cared for by her nannies. As the princess pooed in her nappies the queen repelled by the smell quickly dropped the princess in search of a nanny but did not realise that the baby had actually dropped out of the building. The princess fell onto the straw at the back of the cart thereby pushing the piglet at the front. The piglet lands in the castle onto the princess cot. When the queen comes back with the nannies and sees the piglet instead of her princess she cannot understand what has happened but the king thinks it’s a bad spell and the princess has been turned into a piglet for revenge by a bad fairy. So they care for the piglet thinking it’s their princess. Back at his farm the farmer is surprised to see a princess instead of his piglet but his wife convinces him that the piglet was turned into a baby by a good fairy as they desired a child but could not have one. So the princess grows happily as a normal baby with the farmer and his wife while, the piglet is raised as a princess by the king and queen with many people disliking her as she remains a piglet. When the farmer and his wife hear about a princess turned piglet at the palace the farmer realises the switch that happened. Being honest people they go to the palace to tell them what really happened but they are not believed so they stay with the princess while the king and queen raise the piglet as their princess.I would let the children see cross-curricular links with science as they discuss and explain why the piglet was propelled up when the princess fell. Also would ask if they can explain why the princess was not injured when she fell and for them and to relate the story to see their understanding. I would also let the children understand the need to be very careful when holding babies. What a fabulous story. "The Princess and the Pig" by Jonathan Emmett, is a hilarious short picture book. The text is big and easy to read and the illustrations do a great job informing the audience of details that are not in the text. I loved how the author tied in different fairytales to the plot. I think this helps the audience to relate better to the book and keeps them predicting what will happen next.This book helps to teach the importance of being honest, even in difficult circumstances. It also teaches the importance of not jumping to conclusions. This book has become one of my favorite picture book. I definitely plan to add "The Princess and the Pig" to my own book collection to share with my elementary students when I become a teacher.
This book was amusing and illustrated very well. The colors and art style stuck out to me as being perfect for the tale. It is a cute story to share with children, who will most likely recognize references to other fairy tales in the book if the reader points them out. The book had a different ending than I expected, but I was pleased with it all the same, and it provided a happy ending. Many children will find it funny to see a pig dressed as a princess.
—Sleymaster
This is the proverbial hoot and a half for both kids and adults. It's a switched-at-birth tale of a little girl and a pig -- because these sorts of things ALWAYS happen in books. It end happily for one and twistily for the other, with some snark and a few sly winks along the way. A fun read-aloud which deserves its place on this year's Illinois Monarch list. My students in K-2 loved it. And got it, too.
—vbd1214
A book that "people-who-love-to-read" will love
—Nina0529
