In the spirit of Marshall's comic versions of favorite folk tales, Wells cheerfully retells, abbreviates, and updates Craik's 1874 standby, in print until 1985. Francisco, the sturdy little prince here, is a piglet; he's wheelchair-bound because a pretty chambermaid (a goose) dropped him while adjusting her eyelashes. Osvaldo, the wicked uncle who seizes the throne after Francisco's parents' death, seems to be a Latin American dictator. When Francisco's fairy godmother advises him to take off on his magic carpet to usurp his uncle and save his people, she also suggests that he have a good night's sleep and a big breakfast first; meanwhile, Osvaldo conviently succumbs not only to ""shame and evil"" but also to the mortal toll taken by the cigars, brandy, coffee, and ""huge greasy meals"" in which he's tong indulged. With consummate skill, Wells, creator of many popular books (including the wellloved stories about Max and Ruby), matches her text's lively humor with deft illustrations that capture Osvaldo's greed, the godmother's complacence, and Francisco's subtier moods. A delightful new incarnation for a Victorian favorite.