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Elephant and PiggieElephant and Piggie is a book series for early readers created by Mo Willems.[1] The series, which began in 2007 with two books, features two friends: an antsy male elephant named Gerald, and a vivacious female pig named Piggie.[1] The books are written in conversational style with Piggie's words appearing in pink letter bubbles and Gerald's appearing in grey letter bubbles. The series aims to teach early readers about the importance of friendship, and how to deal with life's problems.[2] The books highlight how friendship is not always easy, but it is very important.[1] The books exhibit simple vocabulary, repetition of phrases, and basic mathematical concepts to facilitate early reading.[1] The series helps readers understand emotion. When the elephant is sad, you can tell on his face. You can also tell through the small font. When a character is happy, the font is larger.[2] The Elephant and Piggie series includes 25 books.[2] Since then, Willems has developed a series called Elephant and Piggie Like Reading!, which features picture books by other authors.[3] A musical has been produced based on the Elephant and Piggie books. Elephant and Piggie have also made visits to libraries around the world, including Lincoln City Libraries (LCL) so that children can interact with the characters.[4] The series has sold millions of copies, making it one of the most popular early reader series ever written, which many attribute the sense of humor throughout the series to its rise to fame.[1]There Is a Bird on Your Head! and Are You Ready to Play Outside? received the Geisel Medal in 2008 and 2009.[5] Today I Will Fly! (ranked #2 in 2007)[6] and Elephants Cannot Dance! (ranked #5 in 2009)[6] were listed on Time magazine's Top 10 Children's Books of the Year. An Elephant and Piggie Biggie! was named Publishers Weekly's best Children's Picture Book in July 2018.[7] PlotThe series follows the lives of an elephant named Gerald and a pig named Piggie.[1] The two contrasting characters are the best of friends.[1] Gerald the Elephant is antsy and serious, while Piggie is exuberant and lively.[1] Willems aimed to teach his readership about the issues of friendship.[2] Their relationship is very real as Elephant and Piggie, just like any other friendship, have their ups and downs.[8] The illustrations help the reader interpret emotions.[9] The illustrations are simple, so the reader can easily understand how the characters are feeling based on their expression.[2] Additionally, the word bubbles assist in conveying the character's feelings. The font will be smaller when a character is sad, and when a character is happy, the font will be very large.[2] The goal of the series is to help readers learn foundational skills to become good friends and people.[1] Elephant and Piggie books often involve basic problems that teach problem solving skills.[2] The series encompasses problem solving skills such as sharing, empathy, acceptance, and overcoming jealousy.[2] At the end of each book, Elephant and Piggie overcome their problems and carry on being best friends.[8] Books
Other editionsBooks in the series Elephant and Piggie Like Reading![10]
There has been a musical made of Elephant and Piggie. The purpose of their musical is to teach young children about the theater. The title of the play is “We Are In A Play!”[11] References
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