Jig, Fig and Mrs Pig

Poor Jig. All day long she has to clean and cook and keep house for nasty Mrs Pig and her son Fig, who's an awful pain. One day, returning home from an errand, Jig comes across an old pig and gives her some of the milk she is carrying. The old pig turns out to be a wizard and Jig's reward is that every time she speaks, a precious stone falls from her mouth. Next day, Fig goes off in search of the old pig but comes across a rich young pig who asks for a drop of milk. True to form, Fig is unpleasant and abusive and he too gets his just desserts - every time he speaks, a toad or a snake will slither from his mouth! The result is that Mrs Pig runs away with Fig behind her, leaving Jig to live happily ever after. The moral of the story being that "the sight of gold and diamonds / gives everyone a thrill / yet kindly words and actions / can be more precious still.";Peter Hansard is also the author of "I Like Monkeys Because...,", "Wag Wag Wag" and "A Field Full of Horses".;Francesca Martin illustrated "Lottie's Cats" (written by Mirabel Cecil) and "The Honey Hunters", which was shortlisted for the Kate Greenaway Medal.