The Three Little Tamales (Traditional)

Kimmel, Eric A. The Three Little Tamales. Ill. by Valeria Docampo. New York: Marshall Cavendish Children, 2009. ISBN 9780761455196

Plot Summary
Three  delicious little tamales escape a taco shop from a sure fate of being someone’s comida (food). Their plan would have gone off without a hitch if it wasn’t for the hungry wolf who happened by their Texas homes. The first and second little tamales barely escape their poorly constructed homes and find their way to their sister’s sturdy home hidden within a cactus. The only question left is what will happen when the wolf discovers the third tamale’s chimney?

Critical Analysis
    Kimmel shines in this rhythmic and humorous version of the three little pigs. The book’s Tex-Mex take on a classic story begins with spunky characters who reveal themselves through their creative choice of homes. As each tamale chooses a home, a new aspect of Texas’  many landscapes is revealed.
    The plot will be predictable to anyone familiar with the traditional tale, but will not stop the book’s charm. Representations of traditional tamale cookery are throughout the text.  A seamless blending of Spanish words into the English text will make native Spanish speakers feel at home. The upbeat and humorous rhyme will encourage read aloud listeners to join in with the big bad wolf’s repetitious threats.
    Docampo’s illustrations are key to this book’s success. Bright and clear oil paintings display traditional Tex-Mex colors and show active movement. Her art gives life and individual personalities to each character. In the end, Kimmel and Docampo’s collaboration will win over readers because of its whimsy and ease. This books will be happily read and reread by all young at heart.

Awards and Review Excerpts
Booklist- “An excellent addition to collections of fairy-tale retellings.”
Library Media Connection- “quite silly, but it works”
School Library Journal- “delightful parody sure to satisfy readers’ appetite for fun”

Connections
*Read this book to young children as an introduction to subtraction. Cutouts of the three little houses will work well as manipulatives for the students as they gradually subtract until there is only one house left!
*Assign students various cultures to research. As part of the project, have students create their own version of the three little pigs that would fit into the assigned culture.
*Compare and Contrast versions of three little pig stories. Examples include...
Artell, Mike. Three little Cajun pigs. New York, N.Y: Dial Books for Young Readers, 2006. ISBN
     0803728158
Geist, Ken. The three little fish and the big bad shark. New York: Scholastic, 2007. ISBN 0439719623
Pichon, Liz. The three horrid little pigs. Wilton, CT: Tiger Tales, 2010. ISBN 1589254236
Trivizas, Eugenios. The three little wolves and the big bad pig. New York, NY: Aladdin Paperbacks,
     1997. ISBN 068981528X