The Three Pigs by David Weisner

This book won the Caldecott in 2002 and I'm always reviewing the list of past winners to see if my children are ready for them. Amazingly enough, though the award is given for illustrations, sometimes the amount of words accompanying them makes them unpalatable for young ears.

However, The Three Pigs is not only well-drawn, but has a great storyline within the pictures. The pigs rescue familiar nursery rhyme characters as they 'jump' out of their own story to avoid the wolf. As with many books that rely on the pictures to tell the story, it many require some adult explanation for younger children to understand. But therein lies another beautiful thing about this book: there is an invitation for the adult to participate in the creative process of storytelling.