The symbol of the piggy bank is used throughout this highly stylised, conceptual wordless picturebook to explore themes of capitalism. This work is a good example of an ideologically loaded picturebook — whether you agree or disagree with the negative tone of the illustration, it is a fantastic way to look at ‘how’ and ‘why’ this effect is created. The piggy bank begins as an innocent object next to the bed of a sleeping child, but on each spread the piggy bank twists into a symbol of inequality and greed. A husband holds the piggy bank as he marries his wife; a piggy bank gnaws on the leg of a banker in a suit; the piggy bank grows and grows, swallowing a procession of bankers who tumbled along an escalator into its waiting jaws. Finally, the piggy bank is depicted as a planet in orbit of the sun, prompting attentive readers to question whether the Earth itself has become too dominated by consumerism and the creation of surplus wealth. This challenging, complex, and controversial picturebook is an important addition to the corpus. It is a great way to introduce teenage readers to the potential for serious themes in the wordless form.
