The Little Green Swing (Little Ruby's Big Ideas #1)

K-Gr 4--This reinvention of the story of the Three Little Pigs features the quiet planner, Ruby, and her boisterous brothers, Oscar Lee, Rodrigo, and José, of the same Latinx family that starred in The Little Blue Bridge. That story took on the "Three Billy Goats Gruff," and this one is just as successful. While a tremendous wind blows, each sibling has an idea for a project. The boys dig in with immediate, but flimsy, projects of rope, ladder, and plank, none of which are any match for the wind. Ruby, whose plan is repeatedly "Not there yet," finally devises a sturdy wooden swing that will stand up to the gustiest of weather. The boys add finishing touches, and the whole family adopts this perch, with a summary of other kinds of swings in the back matter. The contrasting styles of Ruby and her brothers will tickle younger children, who will cheer for the project's outcome. In charcoal pencil, pen, gouache, and digital brushes, Sánchez is at her vigorous best here, serving up dynamic postures and poses in the characters, and such vivid facial expressions that even prereaders will know what's going on. VERDICT Make story hours that contrast this "Three Little Pigs" with other more traditional tellings, and watch Ruby, again, come in first, but with grace.--Kimberly Olson Fakih

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