Little readers will love second-guessing this funny, fractured fairy tale that replays the story of Little Red Riding Hood from the poor maligned wolf's point of view.

No, please. Look at me.
Would I LIE to you?
It was the old woman who started it.

Everyone knows there are at least two sides to every story, and if you believe in the big-eared, sharp-toothed villain of LITTLE RED RIDING HOOD, there's a logical explanation for everything. As our antihero tells it, it all starts with the helpful wolf doing odd jobs for Grandma (are you sure you don't want to sit a little closer?). How was he to know that he spoiled Little Red would come along and ruin a good working relationship? Zooming in dramatically from strategic angles, the amusing illustrations offer visual clues that this is a story to be taken with a grain of salt - and a lot of giggling.

Publisher Comment
Little readers will love second-guessing this funny, fractured fairy tale replaying the story of Little Red Riding Hood from the poor maligned wolf’s point of view. Zooming in dramatically from strategic angles, the amusing illustrations offer visual clues that this is a story to be taken with a grain of salt – and a lot of giggling.

From School Library Journal
PreSchool-Grade 2–The wolf's interpretation of what happened in the Little Red Riding Hood story tries too hard and misses the mark. He tells how he did odd jobs for Grandma and one day, as the woman was reaching into her wardrobe, she 'accidentally bumped her head and was knocked out cold. In a panic, he pushed her inside and donned her dress to fool the granddaughter who was knocking at the door. The text has several lapses in logic. In one situation, the girl says, What BIG ears you have, and the response is 'Oh, these old things,' I said, and changed the subject.' However, he didn't change the subject since the girl is the next to speak. Throughout the retelling, the wolf poses questions that are meant to exude innocence–Would I LIE to you? I did nothing wrong. Would I? Not everyone likes a wolf, do they? The watercolor-and-pencil illustrations reveal a shiny-faced young girl, a cozy-looking grandmother, and a scraggly gray wolf with sly yellow eyes. They offer interesting perspectives: bird's-eye views of the forest; looking into the wolf's eyes to see the reflection of a small red-coated girl; and a view of the child framed by the wolf's tooth-rimmed mouth. At story's end, the animal walks away with his shortened tail wrapped in a bloody bandage while telling readers that he's still available for hire. Stick with Jon Scieszka's The True Story of the 3 Little Pigs! (Viking, 1989) for a humorous, and involving, story of fabricated guilelessness.–Maryann H. Owen, Racine Public Library, WI
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