THE THREE LITTLE SUPERPIGS

The Superpigs continue their zany spins on classic fairy tales with a Halloween twist.

The Superpigs have settled on their costumes and are working on their performance for the Spooktacular Halloween Parade when they’re summoned by Hansel and Gretel to save the stolen candy from the Wicked Witch. Once at her gingerbread house, they’re alarmed to find their familiar foe, the Big Bad Wolf. Using their superskills, they save themselves and make it to the parade in style. Readers unfamiliar with the characters will wonder how the pigs come into their powers. At first, they seem completely and comically without super abilities. “Practice makes perfect,” the text quips, but does practice without magic make pigs fly? This element aside, Evans’ play on childhood classics uses just enough of the originals to make it familiar while still new. The Big Bad Wolf is a particularly fun character, surprising readers (and the pigs!), speaking in rhyme, and even showing up playfully at the end. The illustrations are bright and lively, depicting lots of fairy tale figures, with oranges and purples conveying an autumnal, evening mood. They’re also very detailed, particularly the candy-lined gingerbread house and its lawn full of jack-o’-lanterns. Most of the characters are not human, but Hansel and Gretel are depicted with brown skin. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

Updated, Halloween-ready fairy-tale foolery.