Gerald is careful. Piggie is not.
Piggie cannot help smiling. Gerald can.
Gerald worries so that Piggie does not have to.
Gerald and Pigg... read full description
Piggie cannot help smiling. Gerald can.
Gerald worries so that Piggie does not have to.
Gerald and Pigg... read full description
reviews
Jan 09, 2009
June
rated it: 
Having 2 boys who go through toys very quickly - I thought this was great and I am going to try it next year for my New Year's toy story time.
0 comments
like
(1 person liked it)
May 15, 2010
Connie
rated it: 
Early readers can be such a pain. They have to be easy to read, so they include a lot of very short, repetitititive sentences. I bet you can quote Dick and Jane here: See Spot. See Spot run. Run, Spot, run! Run, run, run! Short, easy to read, lots of practice with those three words... and boring as HECK. Who wants to read that more than once?
Or they do the same thing, but with rhyming: See the cat. The cat is fat. The fat cat sat. Sat on the mat. The fat cat sat on the mat. See the r More...
Or they do the same thing, but with rhyming: See the cat. The cat is fat. The fat cat sat. Sat on the mat. The fat cat sat on the mat. See the r More...
0 comments
like
(3 people liked it)
Feb 01, 2010
Danielle
rated it:
The Turkeybird Speaks: "Give me a minute...thanks! I needed a second to compose myself. The best part about this book...my mom, reading it to me. She's amazing! If I could get her to read it over and over for hours every day I would, because it's great. Hold on, I think I might be able to get her to read it!...
"Hahaha! That was great, I mean really! You are missing out on life if you haven't read this, because if I'm not mistaken they have studies proving that laughter help More...
"Hahaha! That was great, I mean really! You are missing out on life if you haven't read this, because if I'm not mistaken they have studies proving that laughter help More...
Nov 10, 2009
Casey
rated it:
Reading level: K-1
Willems uses very child-like pictures to appeal to the audience. The elephant and pig are fairly small in comparsion to the page. There is a lot of white space which is espeically important for beginning readers. These young readers have a chance to let their eyes rest on the white space, but the repeating colors of the animals and the toy bring familiarity to the story. The text is different and neat in the sense that it is presented fully in word bubbles. More...
Willems uses very child-like pictures to appeal to the audience. The elephant and pig are fairly small in comparsion to the page. There is a lot of white space which is espeically important for beginning readers. These young readers have a chance to let their eyes rest on the white space, but the repeating colors of the animals and the toy bring familiarity to the story. The text is different and neat in the sense that it is presented fully in word bubbles. More...
Nov 30, 2011
Abigail
rated it: 
One of a growing number of Elephant and Piggie books - begun in 2007, with Today I Will Fly!, this series of early-readers from celebrated children's author and artist Mo Willems now includes over fifteen titles - I Love My New Toy! presents the simple story of two friends, and the quarrel that ensues when one of them breaks the other's new toy. Piggie, ecstatically excited about her new plaything, is eager to share it with Elephant, but dismayed and angry when he breaks it. Unwilling to accept
More...
0 comments
like
(2 people liked it)
Jun 24, 2011
Sherry
rated it:
Can't get better than this for storytime if you love drama! My favorite Elephant & Piggie book! Willems' comical and expressive illustrations illuminate his words. It's in the eyes, eyebrows, and facial expressions as well as the body language. It's in the text, which can be bolded one minute, with exclamation marks, then quiet and lowercase, or no comment at all. Vocabulary repetition is a teaching element within all the books in this series. Hard to pull off in a short book, with few wor
More...
2 comments
like
(1 person liked it)
Feb 24, 2010
Erin
rated it:
Piggie gets this new exciting toy and he can’t wait to show his best friend Gerald. Gerald is excited his friend has a new toy, but neither one is certain of what the toy actually is or how to play with it. The two friends decide that the toy would make a great throwing toy and begin tossing it back and forth, until the toy hits the ground and breaks. The broken toy causes an argument between Gerald and Piggie. With the help of a squirrel, the two decide their friendship is more important th
More...
Dec 20, 2011
Kathryn
rated it:
So funny! I love how Mo Willems is able to convey so much emotion with just a few words and his wonderful illustrations. I'm not sure that this was my favorite of his works, though. I guess I wanted a tad more resolution on one point, and maybe some of you can help: do you think the elephant was being devious when he said "Maybe it is a throwing toy?" Because he looked rather devious when he suggested it, but then he seemed genuinely shocked when the toy broke. It seemed like the litt
More...
0 comments
like
(2 people liked it)
Dec 05, 2011
Cheryl in CC NV
rated it:
Ok, why didn't I give this five stars, like I do so much else by Willems? Is it just because the lesson was more overtly presented? Is it because Piggie's grief over the broken toy isn't respected? Is it because I can't relate to cherishing something useless (Piggie doesn't know, at first, what her new toy is, but loves it anyway). Is it because Elephant breaks character/ reveals an aggressive facet to his personality? None of those are good enough reasons to deduct a star, but maybe togeth
More...
0 comments
like
(2 people liked it)
Mar 16, 2009
Janice
rated it:
Kendall has picked up a few Elephant Gerald and Piggie books at the library lately. There are short books with easy words and a slightly skewed way of teaching some sort of lesson about friendship. In this particular story Elephant breaks Piggie's new toy, which is actually supposed to break, and in the end they decide to play tag instead. Bizarre. But it gets five stars because this is the first book the my four year old read to me the entire way through, word for word. How awesome is that
More...
0 comments
like
(1 person liked it)
Dec 03, 2011
David
rated it:
Mo Willems continues his Elephant & Piggie first reader series featuring an optimistic (and sometimes reckless) pig & a cautious, pessimistic elephant. In I Love My New Toy!, Piggie can't wait to show Gerald her brand new toy. But will an accidentally broken toy accidentally break a friendship? (Goodreads Summary)
The illustrations are fun as always. My favorites include Piggy showing Gerald her toy, Gerald throwing the toy, the toy zooming toward the ground, the squirrel snapping the More...
The illustrations are fun as always. My favorites include Piggy showing Gerald her toy, Gerald throwing the toy, the toy zooming toward the ground, the squirrel snapping the More...
0 comments
like
(1 person liked it)
Oct 01, 2008
Catherine
rated it:
In this wry, humorous, and touching story, Piggy shows his friend Elephant his new toy, and Elephant appears to break it. With a simple text (one to five words per page), and expressive line drawings Willems conveys the ups and downs of friendship, including the chagrin one feels when one has wrongly blamed a friend.
This is the sixth in Willems' easy reader series, and like the others it is able to communicate character, emotion, and plot with few words and simple cartoon-like illus More...
This is the sixth in Willems' easy reader series, and like the others it is able to communicate character, emotion, and plot with few words and simple cartoon-like illus More...
Feb 01, 2012
Alicia
rated it:
The Elephant and Piggie books are probably my favorite picture book series. In this story, Piggie has a new toy but he isn't exactly sure what it is or what it does. When Gerald accidentally hurts the new toy, Piggie gets very upset and the duo is threatened! The book shows readers themselves when it comes to sharing, bragging, and selfishness while then giving an effective moral at the end with the help of the squirrel. SUCH an excellent read.
Dec 12, 2011
Randie
rated it:
Mo Willems is quickly becoming one of my go-to authors for picture books. His characters Piggie and Gerald are real; children can relate to them and see themselves in them. This story can help children process their feelings about a very common event—a friend breaking a toy—without being too preachy. Love the simple illustrations, easy to read text, and facial expressions of the characters. Great book!
0 comments
like
(1 person liked it)
May 03, 2009
Montana
rated it:
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers.
To view it, click here
Dec 21, 2011
Jenny
rated it:
Love Mo Willems' books! In this book, Piggy is so excited to have a new toy but Gerald breaks it. Piggy is (understandably) quite mad about it. But Gerald is sorry and in the end, they are still best buddies. Beginning readers can easily read this but the illustrations convey such emotion. And toddlers (or parents of toddlers) will relate to the events in this book.
May 07, 2011
Lanina
rated it:
This is a children's book.
I was searching for ideas to write about children and fate brought me to this book. Amazing, it made me laugh so hard the moment I read it. I couldn't contain my excitement and actually shared about this book and recommended the author to friends.
I will definitely get a set for my future kid to read.
Mo Willems, way to go!
I was searching for ideas to write about children and fate brought me to this book. Amazing, it made me laugh so hard the moment I read it. I couldn't contain my excitement and actually shared about this book and recommended the author to friends.
I will definitely get a set for my future kid to read.
Mo Willems, way to go!
Nov 15, 2011
Hafidha
rated it:
Surprising, funny, original, and highly expressive. My 3yo loved this book from the first read and kept asking for it until I borrowed it from the library. Great for toddlers or preschoolers who are figuring out how to deal with conflict and/or strong emotions. Fun to read repeatedly. I wanted to know how it ended, too - great storytelling!
Dec 10, 2010
Picture Book: I read this three times in a row with my niece, nephew, and little sister. We were laughing so hard. Here is a quick synopsis: PIggie gets a new toy and Elephant breaks it. Elephant is sorry, but Piggie is still mad. It’s a break and snap toy. Piggie feels bad and they realize friends are more important than toys.
Aug 31, 2009
Laura
rated it:
I love these books. They're a great introduction to simple words for the learning-to-read set. And amusing enough for the toddler. The illustrations are quite simple, but convey the emotions of the characters extremely well. And they're sly and enjoyable to read for the grown-up. Plus, offhand squirrel serves as the climax of the plot.
Apr 30, 2011
Stephanie
rated it:
This is another great book in Mo Willems' Elephant and Piggie series. It is a great book to discuss the ups and downs of friendship especially for younger students because fights over toys occurs almost daily in a preschool and kindergarten classroom. It is also a great book to discuss language use and characters in a story.
Mar 17, 2011
Lauren
rated it:
This book is a prefect example of what happens whenn you let someone play with your things. Sometimes they break them. This would be used in my classroom as a sharing/take care of other's propersty lesson. I would want to let my students know that they have to take care of the items in the room so thatothers can use them.
Jan 14, 2010
Alicia
rated it: 
I don't know why I picked up a second "Elephant and Piggie" book. I can't understand with the speech bubbles and exclamation points why these two friends seem to be yelling at each other. You would think I'm misreading all of the textual clues, but it really does seem like they're shouting all of the time!
Jan 08, 2012
Heather
rated it:
What a great book about learning about emotions. Nearly every page features one of the two characters with a different face and emotion. Love, happiness, excitement, curiosity, surprise, sadness, anger, fear, embarrassment, annoyance. They're all in there. And, it is an easy read for beginners.
Apr 03, 2009
Meredith
rated it:
Not my favorite Elephant and Piggie. But that's like saying it's not my favorite kind of pie. I love pie. It's all great! But I would normally choose Pecan over Apple. However, if it's pie or asparagus, I'm eatin' pie, even if it's apple. If you catch my drift.
Apr 14, 2011
Dylan & Belle
rated it:
Rated and reviewed by Dylan, age 7:
This story is about Elephant and Piggie. Piggie has a new toy. His new toy broke. He is mad and sad. He figures out it's a break and snap toy. And then they are friends again. My favorite part was with the break, snap, break, snap.
This story is about Elephant and Piggie. Piggie has a new toy. His new toy broke. He is mad and sad. He figures out it's a break and snap toy. And then they are friends again. My favorite part was with the break, snap, break, snap.
Dec 11, 2011
Dolly
rated it:
We love, love, love Mo Willems's stories and the Elephant and Piggie series is one of our favorites. The stories are very simple, with short dialogue on lots of pages, but the books depict a wide range of emotions and they are great for getting children to see the irony, but also learn how to read aloud with varied tones and emotions. We took turns reading the different parts and we really enjoyed reading it together.
This book was featured as one of the selections for the Toys th More...
This book was featured as one of the selections for the Toys th More...
0 comments
like
(2 people liked it)
Mar 12, 2011
Erica
rated it:
Elephant & Piggie. Piggie gets a new toy; Elephant plays with it and it breaks in half. Both are distraught and cry a sprinkler of tears. Soon, with the help of a squirrel, they discover that friends are more fun than toys. Rec for k-2.
Jul 14, 2009
Smizler
rated it:
My daughter enjoyed flipping through this one solo. From the back seat she was able to make up enough of the story through the illustrations and facial expressions while we took a road trip. She laughed out loud at some of piggies fun faces.
May 13, 2009
Debrarian
rated it:
It is astonishing how complex and emotion-packed (and hilarious) a story Mo Willems can tell with deceptively simple line drawings (depicting two pals: a pig and an elephant) and about 6 words. A terrific early reader.
