Customer Reviews

Red Riding Hood (retold by James Marshall)

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Hold onto your hats! This version is the one I grew up with!
Y'know, where RRH and her granny get EATEN! Gasp, swoon! AND its written with the good ol' James Marshall humor. I loved it as an adult. I read it to my 4 yr old preschool class, not knowing it had the "surprise" ending...tee hee...they were a bit shocked to know that RRH and granny get eaten instead of being locked up in the closet or chased around the room. What will their parents think? The room was dead silent when the wolf gobbled them up, humorously, of course. Nah, I recommend this book for those who want to keep up the tradition in the fairy tale world. Thanks, James Marshall, for braving political correctness' delicacy and doing up the true tale just right!

This book is a very good re-telling of the classic fairy tale Little Red Riding Hood. (Mom tells Red to take a basket of goodies to Grandma, as she isn't feeling well. Also instructs girl not to talk to strangers. Red takes basket of goodies to grandma, meets wolf on the way. Wolf has charming manners, and Red explains where she is going to him. Wolf beats Red to Grandma's house, gobbles up Grandma, and puts on nightcap and glasses. When Red comes to door wolf eats her too. Luckily for them, a hunter comes along and saves them by killing the wolf and cutting him open.)

This version sticks right to the classic, with only a slight, funny twist at the end. The illustrations are bright, bold, colorful and very cute. The story is told in a straightforward, unadorned manner. Granny has a wonderful personality, and the whole book is wonderful. My favorite part is where Granny gets mad at the wolf for coming into her house and interrupting her reading.

Loggie log log log

I can't recommend James Marshall's fairy tale rehashes more enthusiastically. They are SO funny. By all means buy them all for your children. See also "Goldilocks and the Three Bears" and "The Three Little Pigs."

You have to love ANY version of this where Grandma and Little Red get EATEN! Younger readers more familiar with the Grandma getting thrown in the closet or under the bed version may be a little shocked, but it's usually short lived. I find that kids appreciate and enjoy the versions that have the "nasty" bits left in much more than the sanitized version. We are treated to an even greater delight with a few sly details in both the art and text that give the characters some personality traits you don't normally see in the standard retelling...in this version Granny loves to read, Red is charmed by the sly and slightly urban wolf, and the wolf is, well, wicked (he says so himself, more than once)! I really love the silly "surprise at the very end...nicely done!! A very nice retelling that is manages to convey a lot in just a few words and everything is enhanced by the simple (but highly effective) illustrations! I'll definitely be adding this one to my permanent collection! I give it a solid A!

We liked this book but I don't think we'd give it 5 Stars. Five Stars should mean a knock-you-socks off book. This is nice, but rather typical of Marshall, and more or less what you see with most Red Riding Hood stories.

Which is not to say that there isn't humor nor merit in the book. I love that Granny gets cranky at being interrupted while reading in bed (she has a stack of books by the bed), and that in one picture there is an empty box of after dinner mints laying open on the floor. [Granny in fact comments that it was so dark in the wolf's stomach that she couldn't see to read.]

Four Stars. [B-]. Good Read-aloud. Marshall's usual clever artwork. Story follows the older versions in that grandma and Red are swallowed.

I did like this book, but I gave it 4 stars mostly to draw attention that this book might not be for everyone. My children (ages 4 and 6) were definitely a bit disconcerted when the sweet granny got eaten up. Certainly not what they (nor I) was expecting! Of course, it all gets happily resolved in the end - but I had my reservations getting through the book myself. So if you have especially tender-hearted young'uns in the audience, you may want to go for the "sanitized" versions of this classic.

Robert Barfield
Book Review

Red Riding Hood by James Marshal


In this version of Little Red Riding Hood Little Red disobeyed her mom. Her mom says, "Stay on the path". But she did not stay on the path. She found woof the wolf and he told her to pick flowers so he could get to Grandmas house before little Red Riding Hood got there the wolf got there and ate the Grandma. When Little Red Riding Hood s mother knocked at the door the wolf opened the door and he let little Red come in side. Little Red said " What big eyes you have" The walk said "More the better to seeyouwith my dear" "What big teeth you have". The wolf yelled "More the better to eat you my Dear"


Theme: Caution


Message: do not talk to people or animals you do not know. Because it is a warning sign because you could get eaten or kidnapped.

Genre: Fiction. Why: because wolfs cannot talk.


Audience: I would recommend this book to little kids because they do not know whets in the woods.
I liked this book because it was funny and it had a good lesson in it.

I love all James Marshall books. They are clever, funny and I love the illustrations.

my 3 yr old loves this book especially when I sing "hey there little red riding hood..you sure are looking good" song when ring hood meets the wolf in the woods. We've worn out our used book version and are now buying a new one. Thank you James Marshall for the hours of bonding entertainment!

I like the good old ending of this version. It's nice not to pretty it up for the kids like the way we used to know it. The wordings are changed a bit as it is re-told but it's still good and my 2 1/2 year old enjoys it just as much as other happily ever after ending books.