The traditional English folktale of The Three Little Pigs has been transplanted to the Namib Desert, and the pigs transformed into dassies—otherwise known as the rock hyrax, these small mammals are (despite their size) closely related to the elephant—in this charming picture book from author/illustrator Jan Brett. As sisters Mimbi, Pimbi and Timbi move away from the rest of their family, seeking a cooler home at the foot of the mountains, they each build a home for themselves: one made of woven grass, one made of sticks, and one made of rocks. When the local eagle begins to hunt them, the former two homes are quickly demolished, and their residents taken to the eagle's eyrie. It is the third home that stands the test, protecting its owner from attack. Fortunately for the two captured dassies, Agama Man the lizard effects an escape and all ends well, except perhaps for the eagle...

According to the rear dust-jacket flap, The 3 Little Dassies was inspired by a trip Jan Brett made with her husband to Namibia, during which she encountered these cute little creatures. Although sometimes leery of these kinds of transplanted tales, especially when such changes divorce a story from its own cultural context for no good reason, this particular storytelling transformation didn't really bother me. I think this is owing to three factors. First, the characters are animals rather than humans—nothing annoys me more than this mistaken notion that fairy and folklore needs to be made diverse by these kind of interventions, when world folklore is already diverse—second, Jan Brett's artwork is lovely and her storytelling appealing; and third, it felt as if the changes made had actual significance. Which is to say: the transformation actually served a storytelling purpose. As it happens, dassies do live in stone "houses," using the rocks in their native habitat to protect themselves from the eagles which hunt them. Thus the The Three Little Pigs story fits in well with the native reality of Namibia. This, as well as the eventual fate of the eagle (the stand-in here for the big bad wolf), whose feathers are singed black by the fire into which he attempts to dive, also turns this folktale into a pourquoi story, one which explains why the eagles of the region are black, and why dassies live amongst the rocks. Leaving that all aside, this was also just a charming tale, accompanied by lovely artwork. Recommended to all young folklore enthusiasts. ( )

A cute take on the 3 Little Pigs, this time set in Africa with dassies who I'm unfamiliar with but they are ADORABLE.

(I have faint memories of a similar book with [b:The Three Little Javelinas|875593|The Three Little Javelinas (Reading Rainbow Book)|Susan Lowell|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1348346064l/875593._SX50_.jpg|860936] in 3rd grade) ( )

All the lovely details expected in a Jan Brett book. ( )

This is a great guided reading book to use for children in grades 1-3 when focusing on the concept of problem and solution, setting and character, beginning, middle, and end, or making predictions. This book is similar to the book, "The Three Little Pigs" where three dassies build different homes to live in: one made of grass, one made of sticks, and one made of rocks. An eagle comes to each house trying to flap his wings to blow their houses down and eat them, but is unsuccessful in blowing down the house made of rocks. The author provides clues of what is going to happen on the next page in the book, by drawing illustrations in the side bars. Most children are unaware of this text feature, so teachers will have to explain it to them in the guided reading group. ( )

This is a book similar to the story of the three little pigs. The book has many similarities and differences from the story. This is a good shared reading for younger children to help teach setting and character. This would also be a good guided reading book for students if they are familiar with the story of the three little pigs.