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Dec 16, 2009

Brandy rated it:

I liked Today I Will Fly. But this one is just so far superior, for no reason other than the hilariously expressive faces Willems draws on poor Gerald the elephant, who is just melting into despair while Piggy tries desperately to cheer him up.

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

Apr 06, 2009

R. rated it:

The elephant is sad, the pig tries to cheer him up by being a cowboy, a clown and a robot. The elephant is only made sadder because the pig "isn't there" to enjoy the cowboy, the clown and the robot.

The austerity of the prose makes Frog and Toad look like Dostoevsky trying to outwrite a gambling debt.

But five stars for tackling sadness, loneliness.

2 comments like (1 person liked it)

Nov 06, 2011

Kristine rated it:

HOW HAVE I NOT HEARD OF ELEPHANT & PIGGIE BOOKS UNTIL NOW!!!!???????? If you have a child age 4-8 (I think these are technically 'emergent reader' books) you MUST try them out.

Why is Mo Willems a genius, you ask? Because he is. Very much so. Because of what he requires of his readers. Apparently anyone can throw together a picture/children's book that's dreck (I'm looking at you Tyra Banks). Recently I read an article in Horn Books of a talk he (MW) gave. So instead of telli More...

3 comments like (1 person liked it)

Apr 25, 2010

Connie rated it:

Easy Readers are kinda a pain to deal with. You want to hold your kid's attention naturally (they won't want to read a boring book, and who can blame them?) while teaching them something, and you want them to want to read the book again. Reading a book more than once increases their understanding. (Plus, you probably don't have enough cash to buy enough books for your kid to read them each one time only.)

This is a tough sell. Kids don't want to read "books" that are nothing More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Mar 06, 2008

Karla rated it:

Wow! Mo Willems has outdone himself with a great new easy reader series. I looooooove Elephant and Piggie. And this one is particularly hilarious. His illustrations are perfect for an easy reader, because with limited (and repetetive) text, children will know immediately what is going on in the story. Look for more titles!

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jan 08, 2011

David rated it:

Gerald and Piggie are best friends. In My Friend is Sad, elephant Gerald is down in the dumps. Piggie is determined to cheer him up by dressing as a cowboy, a clown, & even a robot! But what does it take to make a sad elephant happy? (Goodreads summary)

My Friend is Sad (Elephant and Piggie) by Mo Willems is just what beginning readers need, a funny book with repetition, large varied type, and funny illustrations. It's a book about friendship that kids will enjoy (and parents will lau More...

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Dec 03, 2007

Lisa rated it:

I love this book! Mo Willems does such a fantasic job with his illustrations and his stories are poingant yet simple. This book works anywhere from pre-k to 8th. It makes most people smile too!

1 comment like (1 person liked it)

Nov 16, 2010

Kristen rated it:

The Elephant & Piggie books are a lot of fun. I've been reading a few each night before I go to bed and they are excellent bedtime stories, even if I'm a little old for that. This is probably my favorite that I've read so far--I love that Gerald is sad because he can't share all of his awesome experiences with his best friend. These are great books for reading aloud and they really capture what is so great about friendship. Willems' artwork is simple, but still very eye-catching and expressive. More...

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Oct 06, 2008

Tawnie rated it:

Grades: K to 3 Genre: Animals
In My Friend is Sad, Mo Willems introduces us to two friends, Gerald and Piggie. One day Piggie notices that her friend Gerald is sad and decides to cheer him up. Dressing up as some his favorite things, Piggie is able to cheer Gerald for only brief amounts of time before he returns to his sad slump. It is only when she gives up and asks what is wrong does she find out that Gerald did not recognize her and was missing his friend. With its comic book like te More...

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May 04, 2011

teacup_carousel rated it:

This wasn't quite the book I was expecting or hoping for. I had hoped the book would address the issue of why Gerald was sad and how he ultimately ends up feeling better. Instead it almost entirely focuses on the second part and none of the first and so I can't help but feel this is a bit of a cop out. Even the way Piggie helps Gerald feel better seemed kind of circumspect to me. I know this series's charm is that it's not completely realistic, but dressing up in costumes to cheer someone up jus More...

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Jul 07, 2010

Seth rated it:

My Friend is Sad: An Elephant and Piggie bok by Mo Willems is another funny funny book. The reader can really feel the energy behind each character in this book. This book is funny and can help early readers develop their sense of humor. This book is about an elephant who is sad and his best friend, a pig, who tries to cheer him up. I enjoyed reading this book very much because of the illustrations and witty sense of humor. I recommend this book to parents and young readers.

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Aug 24, 2011

Elizabeth S rated it:

Such simple stories, with few words per page. And yet they can springboard into all sorts of discussions. For this one, you can talk about what makes someone happy or sad, or finding out what they are sad about before "solving" the problem, or the value of friendship, or just enjoy the story.

My favorite part of these books is the facial expressions of the characters. Speaks volumes. You'd never guess it from how simple the pictures are, but once you see it you love it.

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Mar 13, 2009

Brianna rated it:

Genre: Picture book

Reading Level: Late Emergent to Early Early: ages 4-6

Topics and Themes:Helping a friend

Curricular Use: Independent Reading

Social: This book deals with friendship. One friend, Elephant, is very sad because his friend Piggie is not with him. Piggie sees that Elephant is sad and tries to cheer him up by dressing in fun costumes. Elephant loves the characters Piggie dresses up as but still cannot be happy because his best frien More...

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Feb 04, 2009

oplkids rated it:

Cute, humorous book about friendship. Gerald the elephant is sad and Piggie tries to cheer him up by dressing up, first as a cowboy, then a clown, then a robot. Gerald doesn't recognize Piggie in any of the costumes. At first, Gerald is happy when he sees the cowboy, clown & robot, but immediately becomes sad again. What finally cheers Gerald up? Piggie takes off the costumes and comes to keep Gerald company as himself.

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Jul 08, 2010

Sabrina rated it:

This book was about an elephant that was sad and his friend, who was a pig, tried to make him happy. The pig dressed as a cowboy, a clown, a robot; but the elephant was still sad. In the end the elephant became happy after he saw the pig because he had actually just wanted the pig to be there with him.
This was a humorous book with some simple illustrations. Can be used to teach children about about friendships.

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Jul 24, 2011

Cheryl in CC NV rated it:

Oh goodness. I just love these Elephant & Piggie books. You're reading along, trying to savor each page because it's seeming a bit predictable and there aren't many words, but then something happens that you didn't quite expect, and then Wham! excitement & drama! And then a nice wrap-up and then a little zing of an epilogue. Yes, all that in simple line drawings with an average about 3-4 words per page.

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Oct 04, 2011

Bethany rated it:

I enjoy most Mo Willems books. I was first introduced to his books in a course I took last year, The Young Child, Literature, and Response. I plan on having a collection of his books in my classroom when I am a teacher. They are very helpful and are good learning tools especially for the younger grades. His repetitive formate and layout is good for new readers. He also has a way of adding humor and life lessons into his stories as well.

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Apr 18, 2011

Karelle added it

Hilarious book about 2 friends who are always together.
In this book, elephant is sad so piggy tries to cheer him up.
Silly & amusing illustrations.
Will have Pre K-1st grade students LOL.
Teaches about friendship.
Great books with funny problem solving strategies.
Young children & adults alike will get a kcik out of reading these Mo Willems books.

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Sep 15, 2011

Ashley rated it:

This would be a great book to teach your students about helping someone in the classroom who is sad or is having a bad day. The students can also talk about how it makes them feel when someone helps them out and makes them feel better and how they should always try and make their classmates feel better

Head Start; Ms. Cassie

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Nov 20, 2011

Rachel rated it:

Mo Willems succeeds once again at finding simple situations experienced daily by children. In this book, Elephant is sad, and Piggie tries every possible means of cheering up Elephant. Children understand the emotions in this story and will be engaged as Piggie tries one scheme after another. At the end, when Piggie finally realizes what Elephant needs to feel happy, children learn an important lesson about friendship. The pictures in the book are simple, similar to Willems' other books. The More...

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Feb 21, 2011

Ealthafer rated it:

This book is ideal for a picture walk through. There are words however the story could be told without words because the pictures are so straight forward. Although the illustrations are simple they are very telling of what is going on. The story also uses differnt font sizes and exclimation points to depict emotion. This book would work for young children ages 3-7. **when reading this story aloud be sure to use lots of emotion!**

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Apr 03, 2009

Meredith rated it:

I don't want to say that Gerald is the funny one of this duo, because truly, without Piggie there to ground things, the whole series would be weird. And Gerald isn't funny on purpose. But Gerald's craziness certainly drives the action here. Fun to read out loud with a panicked Gerald voice.

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Aug 30, 2009

Carla rated it:

An adorable book about friendship. This would be a perfect gift to give to a good friend to express how much you appreciate your friendship. Elephant is sad and no matter what Piggie does, it does not cheer him up until he realizes what Elephant really wants.

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Mar 17, 2011

Lauren rated it:

Eleohant and Piggie are at it again. This time elephant is so sad. Piggie tries to cheer him up but elephant doesnt want to cheer up until piggie comes around andhe gets super ecited. This book talks about friendship. This would be good for any grades.

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Jan 31, 2010

Michelle G. rated it:

The book that made my day: A sweet but ironic story about an elephant who is sad, and his best friend, a pig, who tries to cheer him up. For sure, this book presents a different twist on sadness and friendship! Plus....I laughed and smiled as I read it.

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Mar 23, 2011

Roy rated it:

The Elephant & Piggie books by Mo Willems are simply the cutest books to be found. All of them. Filled with belly laughs for your little ones yet also quite amusing to the adult reader, no easy trick. Well done, Mr. Willems. Well done indeed.

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Feb 15, 2011

Kathy Ellen rated it:

What do you do when your friend is sad? What if what you do makes him even more sad? I love Gerald and Piggie. This was the first one of them I read.
See what I liked about it here: http://kraftyellenwrites.com/2011/02/15/...

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Sep 11, 2010

Dolly rated it:

We love Mo Willems's books and the Elephant and Piggie series is hilarious. Our oldest likes to pretend she's Gerald and I am Piggie and we each read our own dialogue. It's fun and we enjoy the back and forth conversation of the story.

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Mar 14, 2011

Sarah rated it:

I didn't love this one like I did Elephants Can't Dance, but I still enjoyed it quite a bit. I love how Mo Willems draws the characters in what seems like a very simple style, but conveys so much in the facial expressions.

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Jul 04, 2011

Katie rated it:

What I love so much about this book, in particular, is Gerald's facial expressions. The frenzied motions he makes as he recounts the amazing things he saw in Piggie's absence show his frustration over the fact that his friend missed out, and his longing to have his friend share in the moment. The size of the text inside each speech bubble also gives cues as to the volume and intensity of Gerald's outbursts, which increase the more agitated he becomes. I also love the subtlety of the end papers - More...

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