Bound To Stay Bound

View MARC Record
 

Full Text Reviews:

Bulletin for the Center... - 06/01/2013 In Teague’s version of this classic tale, a farm’s three pigs are evicted when the farm’s owners decide to move to Florida and leave them with a stipend for their services to the farm. Preferring to spend their money on potato chips and “sody-pop,” the first and second pigs build their houses out of familiar straw and sticks, respectively, leaving their companion to build a beautiful brick house, complete with a vegetable garden. When the “very hungry and somewhat bad” wolf arrives on the scene . . . well, the rest is history. This version remains faithful to tradition but adds a bit of extra silliness (after blowing the first pig’s house down, the wolf exclaims, “I can’t believe that worked!”) that will provide interest even for listeners who know the story. Teague’s signature full-bleed oil illustrations evoke 1950s Americana through their use of visual details such as deliverymen in folded white paper hats and bright turquoise motor scooters, yet tightly curled twigs and lopsided houses make it very clear that this is a fairy-tale environment. Oversize pages and a happy ending with a rehabilitated wolf make this an excellent readaloud choice. A solid modernization of a classic, this book works well as standard folkloric fare for the picture-book set. TA - Copyright 2013 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois.

School Library Journal - 04/20/2013 PreS-Gr 2—In Teague's humorously entertaining and refreshing adaptation of the classic tale, two brothers and a sister are paid "for their good work…and sent on their way" by the farmer and his wife, who are moving to Florida. While the two boys each spend their wages on some inexpensive construction materials for their houses (straw and sticks), using the leftover cash for potato chips and "sody-pop," their more practical sister buys a load of bricks and builds a house that is "big, beautiful, and strong." The hungry wolf, rebuffed by the town's fast-food restaurants, is so amazed when he blows down the houses of straw and sticks that he allows his dinner to escape. Openly embarrassed when he collapses from hunger while huffing and puffing at the brick house, he apologizes, prompting an invitation to dinner, which leads to his moving in with the pigs, the farm cat, a hen, and four ducks. Teague's two-page cartoon oil paintings in warm fall colors feature contented-looking pigs infused with jovial good humor and a puzzled, very childlike wolf disarmed by his own success. The result is a thoroughly delightful reading experience.—Susan Scheps, formerly at Shaker Heights Public Library, OH - Copyright 2013 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission.

Booklist - 05/01/2013 This fractured version of the familiar nursery tale opens with a farmer and his wife selling their farm, paying their three pigs “for their good work,” and sending them off into the world. While the first two pigs build cheap houses of straw and sticks, the third builds herself a brick house. Huffing and puffing, a hungry wolf comes by and blows down the first two homes, but he hyperventilates and passes out at the third. The three pigs revive him, feed him, and take in their now-amiable adversary. Trading in the original story’s sense of justice for the notion that villainy can be cured by a good meal seems a bit off-track, even for a fractured tale. Still, children will enjoy the humor here, including the wolf’s bemused “I can’t believe that worked!” after he blows the straw house down. Animated with drama and deadpan wit, Teague’s large-scale oil paintings show up very well from a distance, making this a good story-hour choice. - Copyright 2013 Booklist.

View MARC Record
Loading...



  • Copyright © Bound to Stay Bound Books, Inc. All rights reserved.
  • Privacy Policy