- The Amazing Bone
"The Amazing Bone" is a 32-page
picture book byWilliam Steig from1976 . It was nominated for theCaldecott Medal in 1977; however,Leo & Diane Dillon 's "" won, so "The Amazing Bone" only received the Honor Award. It was the first of Steig's few books in which the main character is a female.The story is about how Pearl the
pig is walking home from school, and finds a magic bone on the ground, which has the ability to imitate any sound and speak in anylanguage (He samples Spanish and German for her). Pearl takes it with her, and on the way home they have several misadventures, including an encounter with a hungryfox who wants to eat Pearl for dinner.The book was featured in an episode of the
PBS television show Storytime in which it was read to a live audience.Adaptation
In the early 90's a short animated film was made of this book, with
John Lithgow as the narrator. Lithgow also gave his voice for another film adaptation of a William Steig book, "Shrek ".
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.