Description
Bricks
The House a Greedy Pig Built
Katie Cotton and Tor Freeman
(Andersen Press)
The pig who’d come into some gold, ‘who had a truck and lots of clothes,/ and owned some land (marked sold)’ seeks a magnificent home. Thereafter, he hires ‘a cat whose job [is] roofs’ alongside a bricklayer and carpenter. What’s more he promises them ‘four of these coins‘ to build his dream home of Bricks. It seems that what he seeks is ‘a home that’s very grand, that’s big and tall and fine’.
With promises about ‘what’s fair is fair’ and the lure of four gold coins, the pup, hen and cat get to work. It seems it’s a overwhelming task, for they slave ‘away, all night and day‘. What’s more, Pig demands more from them, such as a ‘stables and a shed’. Thereafter, even ‘eight rooms’, including ‘a shed and porch, and a conservatory’ is not enough! How much does Pig require?
However, once the mansion is done, the weary craftspeople are through, and Pig is delighted. ‘Oh yes- that’s the one,/ That’s the house for me‘. Yet when it comes to payment, Pig is not so keen. Furthermore, he is proud of his craftiness in not fulfilling his end of the deal. It means, he thinks the job is done and dusted and he’s the winner. Could he be mistaken?
The traditional story of The Three Little Pigs is ripe for revision and extension. We see this in titles such as There is NO Big Bad Wolf in this Story, for example. However, in this rhyming picture book, we revisit the hero of the story, long after he’s moved on from his brothers, to enjoy his unexpected comeuppance. Altogether, Katie Cotton and Tor Freeman have created a really engaging, satisfying story Bricks, that is ideal to read along with, enjoy, know and share.
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