Author Mo Willems does a wonderful job in this beginning reader book. Piggie finds a ball and then big guy (whale) takes it away from him. Piggy tells Gerald about the big guy taking his ball. Gerald decided to go get the ball back from the big guy, but he is unsuccessful. Piggy, Gerald, and Big Guy learn to solve their problem and become friends by playing together. Children will love this beginning reader and develop a love for reading.

2014 Geisel Honor. ( )

"The best Elephant & Piggie book I have ever read!" -L, 5yrs

See also: You Are (Not) Small by Anna Kang

Piggie runs to Gerald with a story of a ball found and lost; when Gerald goes to confront the "big guy" who took the ball, it turns out the guy is a whale - and the "little ball" is really his! But the whale is friendly, and Piggie suggests they play (invent) "whale ball" together. ( )

Another "Elephant and Piggie" book that beginning readers will get a kick out of. This duo is always entertaining, to say the least. Piggie finds a new ball but it was taken away by a really "big guy." Piggie goes to Elephant for help and the two of them find out a whale took the ball and is disappointed that no one wants to play with him because of his great size. The speech bubbles with all uppercase font and exclamation marks really help beginning readers decipher tone and voice. ( )

This was my first introduction to Elephant & Piggie and I loved it! This is a wonderful story about perspective taking, sharing, and using your imagination. First, we hear the story from Piggie's perspective, then Elephant and then the "Big Guy", or whale. Even though it is meant for younger children, I might bring it into a Kindergarten or 1st-grade classroom and invite the students to write a similar storyline, with unique characters who also have a misunderstanding due to the different perspectives of each character.