Revisioning Red Riding Hood Around the World: An Anthology of International Retellings (The Donald Haase Series in Fairy-Tale Studies) - Softcover

Beckett, Sandra L.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0814334792 ISBN 13: 9780814334799

Publisher: Wayne State University Press, 2013

Synopsis

Across various time periods, audiences, aesthetics, and cultural landscapes, Little Red Riding Hood is a universal icon, and her story is one of the world's most retold tales. In Revisioning Red Riding Hood Around the World: An Anthology of International Retellings, Sandra L. Beckett presents over fifty notable modern retellings, only two of which have appeared previously in English. The tales include works published in twenty-four countries and sixteen languages, in texts that span more than a century, but with the majority written in the last fifty years. They include retellings for children, adolescents, and adults, as well as crossover works intended for an audience of all ages.

The tales in this volume progress from works that recast the story of Little Red Riding Hood from traditional perspectives through more playful versions to more unconventional approaches. Seven sections are arranged thematically: Cautionary Tales for Modern Riding Hoods, Contemporary Riding Hoods Come of Age, Playing with the Story of Red Riding Hood and the Wolf, Rehabilitating the Wolf, The Wolf's Story, The Wolf Within, and Running with the Wolves. Beckett provides an interpretative introduction to each text and insightful information on its author and/or illustrator. A variety of genres are represented, including fairy tale, short story, novella, novel, poetry, illustrated books, and picture books. More than 90 illustrations, both color plates and black-and-white images, reveal further narrative layers of meaning.

The number and diversity of retellings in Revisioning Red Riding Hood demonstrate the tale's remarkable versatility and its exceptional status in the collective unconscious and in literary culture, even beyond the confines of the Western world. This unique anthology contributes to cross-cultural exchange and facilitates comparative study of the tale for readers interested in fairy-tale studies, cultural studies, and literary history.

About this title

About the Author

Sandra L. Beckett is professor of French at Brock University. She is the author of Red Riding Hood for All Ages: A Fairy-Tale Icon in Cross-Cultural Contexts (Wayne State University Press, 2008), Crossover Picturebooks: A Genre for All Ages, Crossover Fiction: Global and Historical Perspectives, Recycling Red Riding Hood, and De grands romanciers écrivent pour les enfants, among others. She has also edited several books, including Beyond Babar: The European Tradition in Children's Literature, Transcending Boundaries: Writing for a Dual Audience of Children and Adults, and Reflections of Change: Children's Literature Since 1945.

Reviews

The collection is comprised of 52 diverse, mostly contemporary retellings in poetry and prose from 24 countries; the oldest published in 1908, the most recent in 2011. The helpful introduction presents the rationale for thematic groupings. The majority of the entries are picture books and some vivid black-and-white or color illustrations from the works are included. The art is as varied as the tales. Detailed descriptions explain how the illustrations extend the text and add nuance to the story. Each entry is prefaced by information about the author and illustrator's work in general and the piece in particular. These prefatory remarks are academic but accessible to older teens. The language of the tales is rich with cultural, historical, and political references. The traditional characters are often imaginatively recast. In the tragic "Little Red Riding Hood" by Japanese writer Iwasaki, the setting is World War II, the head covering is a disaster hood and the crime is committed not by a wolf, but by hungry humans. The wolf is a werewolf in the humorous Czech tale by Mikula and a lover in the Peruvian verse by Chicano in "Wolf in Love." In a disturbingly sexual retelling "Mina, I Love You" by Joiret, Red Riding Hood is portrayed as teenage seductress and she-wolf. In the poem "My Wolf" by Bertier she is a girl in love, and in the cautionary poem by Claude Clement "A Little Red Riding Hood," she survives the encounter but is left psychologically damaged. Many of the stories are meant for adults and include violent or sexual content. Others are fractured variants such as "Little Red Cap Another Way" by Pongrasic, which will be enjoyed by teens. Some of the tales are fun for all ages. Art and English teachers will find the work useful. Recommended for large public libraries and high schools.—Jackie Gropman, formerly at Chantilly Regional Library, VA

Edition details

• Publisher: Wayne State University Press
• Publication date: 2013
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0814334792
• ISBN 13: 9780814334799
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 416