The Princess and the Pig

One fun aspect of being a Cybils judge was that I was introduced to books that I had never heard of before - one being The Princess and the Pig written by Jonathan Emmett and illustrated by Poly Bernatene.  I think the premise of the book is quite clever - it is a spoof on fairy tales.  

Pigmella the pig and Priscilla the princess are swapped as infants and the princess becomes known as Pigmella and grows up a farmer's daughter while Priscilla, the pig, is thought to be the princess under a spell - "it's the sort of thing that happens all the time in books." This line is repeated throughout the text and the illustrations feature a fairy tale where that sort of thing did happen.  While reading this, I found myself wishing I had the fairy tales sitting next to me to reference.  My children kept asking me "What happens in . . . .Thumbelina, Puss in Boots, The Prince and the Pauper?"  I think this a very fun and creative way to reference, and hopefully reintroduce, children to original texts that they may not know or only know the Disney-fied version.  

The illustrations in this book are bright and bold.  They match the tone of the story and add to the fun. I especially love the visual references to the fairy tales. I love the cleverness of this book and a princess story that promotes finding your own "happily ever after." 

This is a very fun book.  Definitely check it out at your local library or bookstore!