Great storytelling braided with lively color and a culturally affirming accent makes this book a real standout.
In this modern reweaving of “Little Red Riding Hood” set on a modern, fanciful African savanna, readers meet a young, black Little Red who gracefully outwits the more-hungry-than-horrifying Lion.
The Lion imagines his “very-clever-plan” to sneak off to a spots-afflicted Auntie Rosie’s house to solve his grumbling tummy, just in time for Little Red to arrive. But of course, the perceptive Little Red instantly notices that the muumuu-clad Lion is not her Auntie Rosie. She forms her own plan to teach the naughty Lion a lesson. She heads first for the Lion’s unkempt mane with brush and comb, magically transforming it into a “lovely new look,” complete with pink bow-tie barrettes. Those pink bow ties inspire Little Red to find a much prettier dress for him to wear than the muumuu. The annoyed, fed-up Lion bellows his hunger only to be confronted with Little Red’s wagging finger as she explains in quick, calming, decisive fashion, “Well, trying to eat children and aunties is VERY naughty. If you were hungry, all you had to do was ask for some food.” They reconcile their relationship swiftly with a box of doughnuts as the tale comes to a close. Wonderful, jazzy illustrations feature brilliant oranges, yellows, and pinks underscored by vivid, playful language to add to the intrigue. Little Red is a mite with a red dress and two spectacular pigtails.
Great storytelling braided with lively color and a culturally affirming accent makes this book a real standout. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: July 26, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-545-91438-3
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: March 29, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Visually accomplished but marred by stereotypical cultural depictions.
Ellis, known for her illustrations for Colin Meloy’s Wildwood series, here riffs on the concept of “home.”
Shifting among homes mundane and speculative, contemporary and not, Ellis begins and ends with views of her own home and a peek into her studio. She highlights palaces and mansions, but she also takes readers to animal homes and a certain famously folkloric shoe (whose iconic Old Woman manages a passel of multiethnic kids absorbed in daring games). One spread showcases “some folks” who “live on the road”; a band unloads its tour bus in front of a theater marquee. Ellis’ compelling ink and gouache paintings, in a palette of blue-grays, sepia and brick red, depict scenes ranging from mythical, underwater Atlantis to a distant moonscape. Another spread, depicting a garden and large building under connected, transparent domes, invites readers to wonder: “Who in the world lives here? / And why?” (Earth is seen as a distant blue marble.) Some of Ellis’ chosen depictions, oddly juxtaposed and stripped of any historical or cultural context due to the stylized design and spare text, become stereotypical. “Some homes are boats. / Some homes are wigwams.” A sailing ship’s crew seems poised to land near a trio of men clad in breechcloths—otherwise unidentified and unremarked upon.
Visually accomplished but marred by stereotypical cultural depictions. (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: Feb. 24, 2015
ISBN: 978-0-7636-6529-6
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Candlewick
Review Posted Online: Nov. 17, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2014
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift.
A paean to teachers and their surrogates everywhere.
This gentle ode to a teacher’s skill at inspiring, encouraging, and being a role model is spoken, presumably, from a child’s viewpoint. However, the voice could equally be that of an adult, because who can’t look back upon teachers or other early mentors who gave of themselves and offered their pupils so much? Indeed, some of the self-aware, self-assured expressions herein seem perhaps more realistic as uttered from one who’s already grown. Alternatively, readers won’t fail to note that this small book, illustrated with gentle soy-ink drawings and featuring an adult-child bear duo engaged in various sedentary and lively pursuits, could just as easily be about human parent- (or grandparent-) child pairs: some of the softly colored illustrations depict scenarios that are more likely to occur within a home and/or other family-oriented setting. Makes sense: aren’t parents and other close family members children’s first teachers? This duality suggests that the book might be best shared one-on-one between a nostalgic adult and a child who’s developed some self-confidence, having learned a thing or two from a parent, grandparent, older relative, or classroom instructor.
A sweet, soft conversation starter and a charming gift. (Picture book. 4-7)Pub Date: March 1, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-943200-08-5
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Compendium
Review Posted Online: Dec. 13, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2017
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