Socrates and the Three Pigs

How many ways can three little pigs be placed in five houses so that no two are in the same house? That's the problem that confronts Socrates the wolf, who wants to nab just one juicy porker for his hungry wife's dinner. Anno's sprightly watercolors and Mori's spare, engaging text will undoubtedly draw young readers into the process. With help from Pythagoras the frog, Socrates's task takes the reader down the road of combinatorial analysis. His systematic thinking leads to endless combinations and permutations of piggies per house. But happy endings abound, as Socrates's wife finds her hunger has waned, and wolves, pigs and frog have a morning romp in the meadow. Although Socrates and the Three Little Pigs stirs up some intended confusion, it provides lots of answers and lays solid groundwork for logical thinking and game theory. (7-up)