Very Little Red Riding Hood

PreS-Gr 2—Immediately, readers know that Very Little Red Riding Hood has very definite ideas about things. Announcing to her mother that she is headed to Grandmama's for a sleepover and must take her cakes, the child heads off on her journey. Predictably, she runs into a Wolf (she mistakenly calls him "a Foxie") and gives him a big hug. After being denied one of the cakes, he tries tagging along, only to be told, "'No!… Go 'way!'" "'No touch my cakes!'" However, Wolf doesn't give up, and Very Little relents. Grandmama is understandably startled to see a bouquet-bearing Wolf on her doorstep and refuses him entry. Her granddaughter convinces her to let him in, and the Wolf joins them for a tea party, game playing, and even a bit of dancing. When Very Little Red's mood abruptly changes and she misses her mother, it is her new friend who is able to stop her tears. The full-color, watercolor-and-ink illustrations pop off white backgrounds with vitality. The Wolf's expressions are especially charming and funny. Text is placed above, below, and around, and the font size varies throughout, giving appropriate emphasis when needed. A fun, fractured adventure.—Sara-Jo Lupo Sites, George F. Johnson Memorial Library, Endicott, NY