{{short description|1977 book by William Steig}} {{Infobox book | italic title = <!--(see above)--> | image = TheAmazingBone.jpg | alt = | caption = Front cover of ''The Amazing Bone'' | author = William Steig | publisher = Farrar, Straus and Giroux | publisher2 = | pub_date = September 1, 1976 | media_type = Print (paperback) | pages = 32 | awards = Caldecott Honor | isbn = | isbn_note = | oclc = 973578476 | website = }} '''''The Amazing Bone''''' is a 32-page children's picture book by William Steig from 1976. It was the first of Steig's few books in which the main character is a female.
The book received the Caldecott Honor Award (1977)<ref name="Haase2008">{{cite book|last=Haase|first=Donald|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cVHhj-GIk0wC&pg=PA919|title=The Greenwood Encyclopedia of Folktales and Fairy Tales: Q-Z|publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group|year=2008|isbn=9780313334443|page=919|accessdate=4 November 2012}}</ref> and was nominated for the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award for Picture Book (1977).
== Plot == ''The Amazing Bone'' is about how Pearl the pig is walking home from school, and finds a magic talking bone on the ground, which has the ability to imitate any sound and speak in any language (it samples Spanish, Polish and German for her). Pearl takes it with her, and on the way home they have several misadventures, including an encounter with a hungry fox who wants to eat Pearl for dinner.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/03/arts/design/03conn.html|title=Worlds Outfoxed by a Wily Inner Child|last=Rothstein|first=Edward|date=3 March 2008|work=The New York Times|accessdate=4 November 2012}}</ref>
The book was featured in an episode of the PBS television show ''Storytime'' in which it was read to a live audience.
==Reception== ''The Amazing Bone'' received the following accolades:
* Caldecott Honor Award (1977)<ref name="Haase2008" /> * Boston Globe-Horn Book Award Nominee for Picture Book (1977)<ref name=":0">{{Cite book|last=Steig|first=William|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YD1u_U-ipgEC|title=The Amazing Bone|date=1993-04-01|publisher=Square Fish|isbn=978-0-374-40358-4|language=en}}</ref> * ''New York Times'' Book Review Notable Children's Book of the Year (1976)<ref name=":0" /> * ''New York Times'' Outstanding Book of the Year (1976)<ref name=":0" />
==Adaptation== In 1985, an animated short film was made of this book, with John Lithgow as the narrator, and produced by Weston Woods Studios.<ref>{{Cite book|date=1985|title=The Amazing Bone|oclc=904383035}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=The Amazing Bone|url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1279924/characters/nm0001475|access-date=2021-10-12|website=IMDb}}</ref> Lithgow also gave his voice for another film adaptation of a William Steig book, ''Shrek''.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Weiss|first=Keaton|date=2021-02-26|title=John Lithgow's 10 Best Villain Performances, Ranked|url=https://screenrant.com/john-lithgow-best-villain-roles/|access-date=2021-10-12|website=Screen Rant|language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|last=Cost|first=Ben|date=2021-04-26|title=X-rated moment you missed in Shrek|work=News.com.au|url=https://www.news.com.au/entertainment/movies/viral-video-exposes-xrated-scene-in-shrek/news-story/a9a7c0884ebb4f6abd1bba94add9ceb6|access-date=2021-10-12}}</ref>
A children's musical was produced at Lifeline Theatre in Chicago, Illinois in 1996.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Bommer|first=Lawrence|date=1997-05-08|title=The Amazing Bone|url=http://chicagoreader.com/arts-culture/the-amazing-bone/|access-date=2021-10-12|website=Chicago Reader|language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last=Lifeline|date=2009-12-16|title=Eric Lane Barnes news|url=http://lifelinetheatre.com/2009/12/16/eric-lane-barnes-news/|access-date=2021-10-12|website=Lifeline Theatre|language=en-US}}</ref> This adaptation, by Eric Lane Barnes, was also produced at the Morgan-Wixson Theatre in Santa Monica, California in 2010.
==References== {{reflist}}
{{Portal|Children's literature}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Amazing Bone, The}} Category:American picture books Category:1976 children's books Category:Children's fiction books Category:Books by William Steig Category:Caldecott Honor–winning works Category:Children's books adapted into films Category:Children's books about pigs Category:Children's books about foxes