by Steven Guarnaccia
In this quirky, artsy retelling of “The Three Little Pigs,” the pigs and their homes are nods to three famous architects—Frank Gehry, Phillip Johnson, and Frank Lloyd Wright—and their signature homes.
Moral of the Story (http://architecture.about.com/)
Just as in the original fairy
tale, Guarnaccia's pigs must outwit a big bad wolf who keeps huffing,
puffing, and blowing their houses down. First the wolf demolishes a
house made of scraps (the Gehry House by Frank Gehry), and then the wolf destroys a house made of glass (the Glass House by Philip Johnson). Finally the architect-pigs find safety in a house made of stone and concrete (Fallingwater by Frank Lloyd Wright).
Now you might wonder how it is that Fallingwater, with its legendary
structural problems, proved stronger than houses by Gehry and Johnson.
Is the author telling us that Wright's vision is more enduring? That
modernist architecture is flawed? Never mind. Guarnaccia's Three Little
Pigs is meant for children. A search for deeper meanings would spoil the
fun.
And this book is fun! Guarnaccia's cartoon-like illustrations are engaging and the antics of the three pigs are amusing and inspiring. The moral - as in the original fairy tale - is that bullies can be defeated if you are clever and hardworking.
And this book is fun! Guarnaccia's cartoon-like illustrations are engaging and the antics of the three pigs are amusing and inspiring. The moral - as in the original fairy tale - is that bullies can be defeated if you are clever and hardworking.
