When the Pigs Took Over

by Arthur Dorros, Diane Greenseid

Here is a riotous tale of two brothers-one small but enormously sensible, one big but a little crazy-told with the warmth and sprinkling of Spanish found in the author's other beloved, groundbreaking books, Abuela and Isla.

Don Carlos always likes more. "¡Más!" he says. More! More what? More of anything: He likes to wear more hats (sometimes ten at a time). He likes more ice cream (he'll eat several cones at once). But most of all, he likes to serve more at his restaurant, the only one in town. People love to eat his huge platters of food and listen to his little brother Alonzo's beautiful violin playing. But, never content, Don Carlos decides to add another dish to his menu-caracoles, snails. Unfortunately, the snails have their own dining plans, and soon the town is overrun by plague after plague of greedy animals. It's up to little Alonzo to clean up his brother's latest, greatest excess.

Diane Greenseid's illustrations glow with the sun-baked colors of the American Southwest, providing a setting as zesty as this flavorful tale. Like Don Carlos, readers will just want MORE.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens

32 pages, Hardcover

First published February 18, 2002

Reviews

[Haley Falls · Rating 4 out of 5]

Summary: Mas. That was all Don Carlos could say when it came to life. More hats, more ice cream, and more for his famous restaurant. His little brother, Alonso, wants to be just like him. The two brothers concoct ideas to make the restaurant even better. However, as the brothers bring new additions to the restaurant, an important lesson is told when the pigs take over: Less is more.
Major Themes: The major themes are Gratefulness, Less is More, and A Little Goes A Long Way.
Personal Response: This book means a lot to me because it was given to me at school. I remember sitting in the school library with the author, Arthur Dorros, reading it to my second-grade class. I was so amazed by the colorful illustrations and silly story line. I loved that there is Spanish incorporated into the book. After he finished reading, he gave each of my class mates a copy of “When the Pigs Took Over.” I could hardly wait to show my mom when I got home. We sat down to read it together and opened it. On the first page, written in black ink said, “To Haley Falls, Mas… Best Wishes! Arthur Dorros.” There was also a little drawing of a pig. I felt so special in that moment and so thankful that an author would take the time to sign a book for me. It really made me excited to read.
Recommendation: This book can be used in a classroom setting in multiple ways. The Spanish theme incorporates culture and language that can be easily understood by students. It makes learning Spanish fun. It has a glossary at the front of the book that explains the meaning and pronunciation of the Spanish words included in the text. It also teaches the important lesson that less is more. It teaches students to be grateful for what they have, and how often a little can go a long way. I highly recommend including this book in a classroom of kindergarten to second graders.

[Kennedy · Rating 5 out of 5]

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[Derek Newman · Rating 5 out of 5]

When the Pigs Took Over, written by Arthur Dorros and illustrated by Diane Greenseid, is the tale of a man named Don Carlos that lives in a small town in New Mexico. Don Carlos is a fan of "more everything"; be it ice cream, hats, or food at the restaurant Don Carlos owns, he always wants more! One day, while pondering what other types of food he can add to the menu, Don Carlos gathers up the small town to gather up thousands of snails to bring into the city to add to his restaurant's menu. The snails cause an infestation in the town, which leads Don Carlos to bring in huge amounts of birds to eat the snails. After the birds infest the town, Don Carlos brings in pigs to drive out the birds. But can the small, New Mexico town get rid of the pigs?

When the Pigs Took Over is drawn in a cartoon and naive aesthetic, and Diane Greenseid took an actual trip to New Mexico to research the setting for the book. The book uses mostly warm hues; the dirt road that winds throughout the town ranges from a deep yellow to a bright orange, and the adobe houses are colorfully painted in ocean blues and hot pinks. It uses a fairly light tone, with a very bright saturation. The saturation is so bright, in fact, that every single character and animal seems to pop out of the page individually. Greenseid makes use of diagonal lines throughout the book, and they are in fact much more common than diagonal or horizontal lines. This makes the small town feel incredibly lively and active, and gives a hectic feeling when snails, birds, and pigs run loose throughout the city. This is a fantastic children's book that teaches us that more is not always better.

[Matthew · Rating 4 out of 5]

A humorous slow-building calamity. A great primary grade read aloud that incorporates Spanish text into the flow of the narrative. Nicely done.

[Dolly · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an entertaining story about one pesky animal after another being added to the mix until the situation is muy loco. The narrative is quite humorous and the illustrations are vibrant and silly. The narrative is sprinkled liberally with spanish words and phrases and the mixture is seamless within the story. We enjoyed reading this book together.

[David Roman]

This is an entertaining story about one pesky animal after another being added to the mix until the situation is muy loco. The narrative is quite humorous and the illustrations are vibrant and silly. The narrative is sprinkled liberally with spanish words and phrases and the mixture is seamless within the story.

[Carlos Rodriguez]

This book is about how a man was amazing his name was doncarlos. doncarlos woukld try to make things better and he can better. He tried to give snails at the restaurant but it didnt work so he tried to get rid of them. so he got birds but then the birds didnt want to get away. then the pigs came and they destroyed all the the town.

[Kelly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Much like the text, the illustrations are lively and I enjoy the thoughtful integration of simple Spanish words into the text. Plus, we used this as a "fun" book to expand the children's knowledge of restaurants -- how they work, what foods they serve, and so on.

[Emmanuel · Rating 2 out of 5]

I like this story. The people were happy but then snails came out of no where so they use birds to make the snails to go away. But then the birds started to stay, then they use pigs to it work but then the pigs started to make a mess. But the little boy use the music for the pigs can go away.

[Saunders Awards · Rating 4 out of 5]

This author's books are many times better for teaching children some Spanish vocabulary than Dora the Explorer. The story was fun and engaging for small children. The illustrations included details for children to hunt and enjoy.

[Lucia Benzor · Rating 3 out of 5]

Funny story about more not always being better. Has Spanish words and great illustrations.

[Christine Rocha · Rating 5 out of 5]

this book is really interesting,It has some Spanish words in it, its also pretty funny. Also it has good illustrations, i like this book because it has pigs.

[Johanna Robles · Rating 4 out of 5]

i really like this book its amazing. my favorite character is Don Carlos.the cool part is that they use Spanish words in this book.is a great book.Don Carlos always says "Mas" "more".

[Gabriela Rosas · Rating 3 out of 5]

i like this book it was pretty good. it was funny and they have some good illustrations. i like the pigs in the story.

[Aczel Barron]

I think this book was amazing. I would tell all friends to read this book.My favorite part was when the snails infested the town and there was no exterminator.

[Tiffiny · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not one of my personal favorites, but my 4 year old loves this book!